The National Cotton Council was among a wide swath of groups signing a letter to key House and Senate budget and appropriations committee leaders urging them to reject calls for additional cuts to 2018 Farm Bill.
The organizations, representing such sectors as agriculture, nutrition, conservation, rural development, finance, forestry, energy, trade, veterinary medicine, labor, outdoor recreation and equipment manufacturing “strongly urge you to reject calls for additional cuts to policies within the jurisdiction of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry or the House Committee on Agriculture,” the letter said.
“Almost three years ago, Congress passed a bipartisan farm bill that made a significant contribution to deficit reduction,” the consortium said. “This bipartisan legislation was estimated to contribute $23 billion to deficit reduction over 10 years at the time of passage….It was the only reauthorization bill in that Congress that voluntarily offered savings. These difficult cuts resulted from hard choices made to reform and reduce the farm safety net, conservation initiatives and nutrition assistance.”
The group noted the Congressional Budget Office’s January baseline estimates that the 2014 Farm Bill has cost far less than projected. According to CBO, nutrition and crop insurance alone will spend nearly $100 billion less, while mandatory federal spending outside the Agriculture Committees’ jurisdiction has risen over the same time period.
“We have all begun preparing for the 2018 Farm Bill and recognize that passing a bill with additional funding reductions would be extremely difficult, if not impossible,” the groups wrote. “Therefore, as the Senate and House Agriculture Committees begin preparing for the 2018 Farm Bill, it is imperative that the committees not be hamstrung by further budget or appropriations cuts to any farm bill program. Instead, we strongly encourage you to recognize the substantial savings already achieved, which far exceed expectations and to provide the committees the opportunity to complete their work through regular order, without arbitrary budget cuts or caps.”
The groups noted that with the agriculture and rural economy struggling, households across the country struggling to meet their basic needs for nutrition and farm income down 46 percent from only three years ago, it would be perilous to hinder development and passage of the 2018 Farm Bill with further cuts.
They said during consideration of the 2014 Farm Bill, the Agriculture Committees made the difficult choices necessary to deliver a bipartisan bill.
“Budget cuts made in that bill should be recognized as Agriculture’s contribution to deficit reduction,” the consortium wrote. “We know the committees will once again face challenging budgetary and policy choices in the development of the 2018 Farm Bill. That is why it is so important you ensure the committee process for the farm bill can proceed with some budget flexibility.”
The Senate Agriculture Committee is scheduled to hold its first farm bill field hearing on Thursday in Kansas.