[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 57 (Wednesday, May 11, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: May 11, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
        USDA PROGRAM CUTS NONPRODUCTIVE, FAIL TO REDUCE DEFICIT

  (Mr. ALLARD asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. ALLARD. Madam Speaker, when the administration proposed their 
1995 Federal budget they targeted 115 programs for elimination. 
Included among these programs was the Sunflower Oil Assistance Program. 
The administration estimated that elimination of this program would 
save $50 million that would help reduce the deficit. But wait, 
according to USDA after figuring in the cost to the Export Enhancement 
Program by taking this action and after figuring in producers who shift 
to other program crops because they lose overseas markets you find 
that, at best, no money is saved through elimination of this program. 
As Charles Osgood recently said on the ``Osgood Files,'' ``the 
Sunflower Assistance Program is 1 of 115 Federal programs that Mr. 
Clinton wants to cut from the 1995 budget. It is the biggest one on the 
Agriculture hit list. All you need is 114 more like that and, bingo, 
you haven't saved a dime.'' This is not the kind of budget cutting that 
is going to result in a balanced budget, we need to thoroughly review 
where we are going with President Clinton's Agricultural program cuts. 
Under GATT he traded away significant cuts in foreign internal 
subsidies while at the same time cutting programs that help our farmers 
compete in the world market against those foreign subsidies. This is 
not the way American farmers are going to be able to compete in the 
world market.

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