I’m very proud of the work we are doing in Congress on the Farm Bill.  Far from being just about corn, cotton and cattle; this bill contains wide ranging provisions that will prove a boon to the entire nation.  Most importantly, 67% of the funding in this bill will be for nutrition, with much needed increases in school nutrition and food assistance for the poor.  Given the rising cost of food, it is imperative that we continue to support those most at risk of poor nutrition; that is, seniors, children and the poor.

Help with rising food costs in America

• Nearly three-fourths of the Farm Bill, $10.4 billion in new spending, goes to nutrition programs.

• The measure eliminates the current cap on childcare costs and makes sure that the families of soldiers in combat are not penalized under the food stamp program.

• The minimum benefit would be increased for the first time in 30 years and would be indexed to keep up with rising food prices.

• Provides vital support to emergency feeding organizations, such as food banks, food pantries, and soup kitchens– with $50 million for immediate shortages at food pantries.

• Helps schools provide healthy snacks to students, with $1 billion for free fresh fruits and vegetables.

In this bill we are also addressing the high cost of food and our dependence on foreign oil by increasing our investment in cellulosic ethanol and shifting away from ethanol based on corn.  Our focus on corn based ethanol has had the unintended consequence of causing food prices to rise, by diverting corn away from the food market and into the gas tank the price of everything from cereal to pork has risen.  We’re tackling this problem by lowering the tax credit given to corn-based ethanol producers.  However, ethanol has tremendous environmental benefits so we’re raising the tax credit on cellulosic ethanol which should help ease the pressure on food prices.  This will also help Georgia greatly as our state is leading the way in developing this type of biofuel.

Reducing corn-based ethanol’s impact on prices

• The Farm Bill takes another critical step in transitioning biofuels beyond corn— by reducing the current tax credit for corn-based ethanol by six cents per gallon and creating a new tax credit to promote the production of cellulosic biofuels. Southeastern states produce more cellulosic products than corn.

• The Farm Bill invests $1 billion in renewable energy focusing on new technologies and new sources, including $320 million in loan guarantees for biorefineries that produce advanced biofuels and a new program to encourage the production of new biomass for cellulosic ethanol and other energy production, helping producers learn how to harvest, store, and transport biomass to bioenergy facilities.

One of the provisions of the bill that I am most proud of however, is the assistance we are providing for black farmers who had suffered racial discrimination at the hands of USDA.  The farmers were lied to and defrauded and driven from their land and have faced enormous bureaucratic hurdles in seeking restitution.  We finally have a chance with this bill to rectify USDA’s past transgressions, and hopefully continue the proud tradition of African American farming in the South.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 14th, 2008 at 4:52 pm and is filed under Politics .