[House Document 106-32]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



106th Congress, 1st Session - - - - - - - - - - - - - House Document 106-32


 
                     REQUESTS FOR EMERGENCY FY 1999

                      SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS

                               __________

                             COMMUNICATION

                                  from

                   THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                              transmitting

  REQUESTS FOR EMERGENCY FY 1999 SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE 
                       DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

 


March 1, 1999.--Referred to the Committee on Appropriations and ordered 
                             to be printed

                         -----------------------
                     U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
69-012                       WASHINGTON : 1999



                                           The White House,
                                     Washington, February 26, 1999.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives.
    Sir: I ask the Congress to consider expeditiously the 
enclosed requests for emergency FY 1999 supplemental 
appropriations. The requests, totaling $152.4 million in budget 
authority, would provide urgently needed funds to the 
Department of Agriculture. The proposals include $109.6 million 
in budget authority to support a total of $1.1 billion in 
additional lending to farmers and ranchers for emergency, 
operating, and ownership loans. In addition, $42.8 million is 
requested for the Farm Service Agency to support the greater-
than-projected workload required to implement emergency farm 
programs in the remainder of the year. I urge the Congress to 
join me in helping our farmers and ranchers by providing this 
emergency relief by the end of March.
    I hereby designate the following requests as emergency 
requirements pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced 
Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended.

                       Department of Agriculture

 Farm Service Agency, Salaries and expenses: 
$42,753,000
 Farm Service Agency, Agricultural credit insurance 
fund program account: $109,609,000
    The details of these requests are set forth in the enclosed 
letter from the Director of the Office of Management and 
Budget. I concur with his comments and observations.
            Sincerely,
                                                William J. Clinton.
    Enclosure.
             [Estimate No. 8, 106th Congress, 1st Session]

                 Executive Office of the President,
                           Office of Management and Budget,
                                 Washington, DC, February 26, 1999.
The President,
The White House.
    Submitted for your consideration are requests for FY 1999 
emergency supplemental appropriations for the Department of 
Agriculture (USDA). A total of $152.4 million in new budget 
authority is requested to support $1.1 billion for emergency 
agricultural programs. Due to the urgent needs of America's 
farmers and ranchers, we request that you ask the Congress to 
complete action prior to the end of March.
    As described in the enclosures, the following supplementals 
are requested to address these emergency needs:
 $109.6 million to increase the lending capacity of 
USDA's direct and guaranteed farm loan programs, including farm 
ownership loans, farm operating loans, and emergency loans, as 
well as the program expenses associated with their delivery.
 $42.8 million to assist the Department in the delivery 
of disaster assistance related to the emergency provisions of 
P.L. 105-277, the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency 
Supplemental Appropriations Act of 1999.
    I recommend that you designate the amounts requested as 
emergency funding requirements pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A) 
of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 
1985, as amended.
    I have carefully reviewed these proposals and am satisfied 
that they are necessary at this time. Therefore, I join the 
Secretary of Agriculture in recommending that you transmit the 
proposals to the Congress.
            Sincerely,
                                            Jacob J. Lew, Director.
    Enclosures.

                       DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

                          Farm Service Agency

                         Salaries and Expenses

    For an additional amount for ``Salaries and Expenses,'' 
$42,753,000, to remain available until expended: Provided, That 
the entire amount is designated by the Congress as an emergency 
requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced 
Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended.
    P.L. 105-277, the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency 
Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999, provided $40 million in 
Department of Agriculture (USDA) emergency salaries and 
expenses funds. This funding was in recognition of the 
administrative burden placed on USDA's Farm Service Agency 
(FSA) by the disaster assistance provisions in P.L. 105-277. 
FSA estimates the need for additional temporary staffing for 
five months to implement those provisions fully. This proposal 
would not fund additional permanent staff.
    The entire amount requested has been designated by the 
President as an emergency requirement pursuant to the Balanced 
Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended.

                       DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

                          Farm Service Agency

           agricultural credit insurance fund program account

    For additional gross obligations for the principal amount 
of direct and guaranteed loans as authorized by 7 U.S.C. 1928-
1929, to be available from funds in the Agricultural Credit 
Insurance Fund, $1,095,000,000, as follows: $350,000,000 for 
guaranteed farm ownership loans; $200,000,000 for direct farm 
ownership loans; $185,000,000 for direct farm operating loans; 
$185,000,000 for subsidized guaranteed farm operating loans; 
and $175,000,000 for emergency farm loans.
    For the additional cost of direct and guaranteed farm 
loans, including the cost of modifying such loans as defined in 
section 502 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, to remain 
available until September 30, 2000; farm operating loans, 
$28,804,000, of which $12,635,000 shall be for direct loans and 
$16,169,000 for guaranteed subsidized loans; farm ownership 
loans, $35,505,000, of which $29,940,000 shall be for direct 
loan and $5,565,000 for guaranteed loans; emergency loans, 
$41,300,000; and administrative expenses to carry out the loan 
programs, $4,000,000: Provided, That the entire amount is 
designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant 
to section 251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 
Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended.
    P.L. 105-277, the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency 
Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999, (the Act), provided $2.8 
billion in Department of Agriculture (USDA) farm loans 
supported by more than $121 million in credit subsidies. This 
funding is expected to be depleted for all USDA farm loan 
programs by April 15, 1999. This request for emergency 
supplemental appropriations for farm loan is in response to 
unprecedented demand for agricultural credit due to 
persistently low commodity prices. In FY 1998, USDA loan 
programs served 26,000 farmers. The Act increased that number 
for FY 1999 to 31,000. With this supplemental funding, USDA 
would have the ability to help more than 12,000 additional 
farmers in need of capital, bringing the total to over 43,000 
in FY 1999.
    The entire amount requested has been designated by the 
President as an emergency requirement pursuant to the Balanced 
Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended.

                                
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