[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5051 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5051

 To provide direct payments to dairy producers for any month in which 
the prices received by milk producers for milk for the preceding three 
    months is less than a target price of $12.50 per hundredweight.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 27, 2000

    Mr. Kind (for himself, Mr. Obey, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Houghton, Mr. 
  Sanders, and Mr. Baldacci) introduced the following bill; which was 
                referred to the Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide direct payments to dairy producers for any month in which 
the prices received by milk producers for milk for the preceding three 
    months is less than a target price of $12.50 per hundredweight.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Family Farm Dairy Equity 
Act of 2000''.

SEC. 2. DIRECT PAYMENTS TO DAIRY PRODUCERS TO OFFSET LOW MILK PRICES.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Average milk price.--The term ``average milk price'' 
        means the average price under the Federal milk marketing orders 
        of Class III milk (or milk used to produce cheese) and Class IV 
        milk (or milk used to produce butter and nonfat dry milk) for 
        the preceding three-month period.
            (2) Class I milk.--The term ``Class I milk'' means milk 
        classified as Class I milk under a Federal milk marketing 
        order.
            (3) Class II milk.--The term ``Class II milk'' means milk 
        classified as Class II milk under a Federal milk marketing 
        order.
            (4) Class III milk.--The term ``Class III milk'' means milk 
        classified as Class III milk under a Federal milk marketing 
        order.
            (5) Class IV milk.--The term ``Class IV milk'' means milk 
        classified as Class IV milk under a Federal milk marketing 
        order.
            (6) Federal milk marketing order.--The term ``Federal milk 
        marketing order'' means a milk marketing order issued under 
        section 8c of the Agricultural Adjustment Act (7 U.S.C. 608c), 
        reenacted with amendments by the Agricultural Marketing 
        Agreement Act of 1937.
            (7) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Agriculture.
            (8) Target price.--The term ``target price'' means $12.50 
        per hundredweight for milk containing 3.67 percent butterfat.
    (b) Payments Required.--The Secretary shall make a payment under 
this section to producers on a farm for any month in which the average 
milk price applicable to that month is less than the target price. 
Producers shall be eligible for payments regardless of whether they 
market their milk within the Federal milk marketing order system. 
Payments for producers operating outside the Federal order system shall 
be calculated to be equivalent to payments for producers operating 
within the Federal order system.
    (c) Amount of Payment.--Subject to subsection (d), the amount of 
the payment to be made to producers on a farm under subsection (b) for 
a month shall be equal to the following:
            (1) The difference between the target price and the average 
        Class III milk price multiplied by the percentage of milk used 
        as Class III milk of the total amount of milk marketed by the 
        producer, as determined by the Secretary.
            (2) The difference between the target price and the average 
        Class IV milk price multiplied by the percentage of milk used 
        as Class IV milk of the total amount of milk marketed by the 
        producer, as determined by the Secretary.
            (3) The difference between the target price and the average 
        Class I milk mover multiplied by the percentage of milk used as 
        Class I milk of the total amount of milk marketed by the 
        producer, as determined by the Secretary.
            (4) The difference between the target price and the average 
        Class II milk price multiplied by the percentage of milk used 
        as Class II milk of the total amount of milk marketed by the 
        producer, as determined by the Secretary.
    (d) Limitations.--
            (1) Payment limitation.--Maximum payments under this 
        section for a calendar year may not exceed $50,000 per farm.
            (2) Quantity limitation.--The producers on a farm shall be 
        eligible for payments under this section for a month for not 
        more than the smaller of the following:
                    (A) The producers' average monthly production, 
                determined using the production during the previous 
                calendar year and the current calendar year.
                    (B) 216,666 pounds produced monthly.
                    (C) Some other production base for the farm 
                considered appropriate by the Secretary.
            (3) New producers.--In the case of producers on a farm who 
        do not have a production base for the previous calender year, 
        the quantity limitation otherwise applicable under paragraph 
        (2)(A) shall be based on current monthly production only.
            (4) Transfer of production base.--There is no restriction 
        on the ability of the producers on a farm to transfer the 
        production history determined under paragraph (2)(A) for the 
        farm as part of the transfer of the ownership of the farm.
    (e) Time for Payments.--Payments required under this section for a 
month shall be made not later than the 21st day after the end of the 
month.
    (f) Farm Reconstitution.--The Secretary shall carry out this 
section in such a manner that there are no additional outlays under 
this section as a result of the reconstitution of a farm that the 
Secretary determines occurred in whole or in part for the purpose of 
increasing the amounts received as payments under this section.
    (g) Administration; Funding Source.--The Secretary shall carry out 
this section using the funds, facilities, and authorities of the 
Commodity Credit Corporation.
    (h) Period of Effectiveness.--This section shall be effective only 
during the period beginning on January 1, 2001, and ending on December 
31, 2005.
    (i) Comptroller General Report.--Not later than three years after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 
submit to Congress a report that analyzes the effect of the operation 
of this section on farm income, milk production levels, milk prices, 
and Government and consumer costs.
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