[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 124 (Tuesday, October 5, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H8131-H8133]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 AGRICULTURAL ADJUSTMENT ACT AMENDMENT

  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the

[[Page H8132]]

bill (H.R. 2984) to amend the Agricultural Adjustment Act to remove the 
requirement that processors be members of an agency administering a 
marketing order applicable to pears.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 2984

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

     SECTION 1. PEAR MARKETING ORDERS.

       Section 8c(7)(C) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act (7 
     U.S.C. 608c(7)(C)), reenacted with amendments by the 
     Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, is amended in 
     the last sentence--
       (1) by striking ``or pears''; and
       (2) by striking ``: Provided,'' and all that follows 
     through ``be equal''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Stenholm) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte).
  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself of such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2984, introduced by the 
gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden). This legislation removes the 
requirement that processors be members of an agency administering a 
marketing order applicable to pears.
  The pear industry has been working with the U.S. Department of 
Agriculture to consolidate the various pear marketing orders. Current 
statute requires that any marketing order that assesses processing 
pears must have equal representation from producers and processors on 
its governing board. This statute is a barrier to the industry's 
consolidation plan and would unjustly grant processors, who do not pay 
in the Federal marketing orders, a role in directing activities funded 
with producer dollars.
  H.R. 2984 would allow producers alone to dictate how their funds will 
be used in pear promotion activities. The pear industry, from producers 
to processors, is united in their support of this bill.
  I want to applaud its gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden) for his work 
in bringing forth commonsense legislation that is wholeheartedly 
supported by the pear industry. I appreciate his leadership on behalf 
of his constituents. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2984.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. STENHOLM. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2984. Current statute requires 
any marketing order that assesses processing pears must have equal 
representation from producers and processors on its governing board. 
This statute is a barrier to the industry's consolidation plan and 
would unjustly grant processors, who do not pay into Federal marketing 
orders, a role in directing activities funded with producer dollars.
  The Pacific Northwest pear industry is seeking to consolidate 
promotional activity under a single Federal marketing order for fresh 
pears and processing pears that will be funded, operated and managed by 
pear producers.
  H.R. 2984 would remove the existing processor membership requirement, 
allowing the industry to establish a single producer-funded-and-
operated Federal marketing order. This change will pave the way for 
consolidation and allow producers alone to determine how their funds 
will be used in pear promotion activities.
  The pear industry is unified in support of the proposed changes made 
in H.R. 2984, and I encourage members to support this measure.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the gentleman from North 
Dakota (Mr. Pomeroy) be allowed to manage the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such time as 
he may consume to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden), the author of 
the legislation.
  Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the ranking member 
of the committee and the committee chairman and subcommittee chairman 
for their work on this legislation. I want to thank the gentleman from 
Washington (Mr. Hastings), the gentleman from Washington (Mr. 
Nethercutt) and the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Larsen) for joining 
me as cosponsors of this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I represent pear country in the northwest, at least in 
the State of Oregon. In the great Hood River Valley and down in the 
Jackson Road Valley, Jackson County and elsewhere across my district, 
they grow tremendous, tasty pears, many of which find their way into 
special packages from Harry and David, among other companies.
  Our pear growers are trying to be innovative in terms of how they 
market their products. Many individual growers now are growing organic 
fruit, and many are taking it upon themselves to market their own 
products to the public, as opposed to necessarily going through big 
processors, although, obviously, the bulk of the fruit still is dealt 
with that way. But they are looking for new ways to bring value added 
to their products.
  The industry, therefore, is seeking to consolidate their promotional 
activity under a single Federal marketing order, and the current 
statute requires that any marketing order that assesses processing 
pears must have equal representation from producers and processors on 
its governing board, and yet the processors pay nothing into this 
process.
  So, as a result, they have come to us, the processors and the 
growers, and said, ``You know, why don't you change this law and let us 
go ahead and streamline how we operate.''
  So this legislation does that. It removes the existing processor 
membership requirement, and the processors all support that. The change 
will pave the way for consolidation and allow producers alone to 
dictate how their funds will be used in pear promotional activities.
  The pear industry is united behind this. Each of the Pacific 
Northwest pear processors have expressed support for the changes. The 
Oregon, Washington and California State marketing commissions support 
it. Both Federal marketing orders are in support. The Pacific Northwest 
Canned Pear Service, the nonprofit voluntary marketing board of the 
Northwest canned pear industry, supports it. And the Washington-Oregon 
Canning Pear Association, the nonprofit bargaining association, all 
support H.R. 2984.
  So, Mr. Speaker, I encourage the approval of this legislation. I look 
forward to having this written into law and having our pear industry be 
able to be more competitive in its promotional activities.
  Mr. POMEROY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to assume the responsibility of floor 
management on this and subsequent pieces of legislation for the ranking 
member, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Stenholm). He, at this moment, is 
appearing before the House Committee on Rules in support of an 
amendment to be considered tomorrow advancing disaster relief for 
America's farmers.
  The amendment of the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Stenholm), which I 
have cosponsored and strongly support, would represent a commitment by 
this House similar to that made by the Senate, a roughly $3 billion 
commitment in support of farmers who have had disastrous results this 
growing season in light of weather circumstances not anticipated and 
not normal and truly of a disastrous magnitude.
  We stand prepared and will help those victims of the Florida 
hurricanes. We also have to recognize that, when it comes to production 
of agriculture, there are a lot of other types of disasters that have 
wreaked havoc right across this country, and that is the reason that 
the legislation that the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Stenholm) is moving 
forward, supported by both Republican and Democratic Members of this 
body representing agriculture production areas, is so critically 
important.
  I certainly hope that the ranking member is successful in his efforts 
to have an amendment made in order that will allow consideration of the 
disaster relief. We believe and we believe strongly that the disaster 
relief that passed the Senate is the disaster relief that our farmers 
need and deserve. We believe anything short of that would be an 
abdication by this House in meeting the needs of farmers. That is why 
we feel so strongly about it that the gentleman from Texas (Mr. 
Stenholm) actually left the floor management to go

[[Page H8133]]

to rules and make the case for this legislation.
  Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to 
support passage of this legislation to remove the Agricultural 
Adjustment Act requirement that processors be members of an agency 
administering a marketing order on pears.
  I want to thank my friend and colleague from Oregon, Mr. Walden, for 
his hard work on behalf of the NW pear industry.
  My Congressional district produces 44 percent of the nation's pears, 
and Washington State is the top pear producing state in the nation. The 
pear growers I represent and their fellow pear growers throughout the 
Pacific Northwest are working hard to meet the challenges of foreign 
competition and changing consumer tastes, and industry marketing 
organizations are a vital part of this effort. However, Northwest pear 
growers are operating under an unnecessarily complicated arrangement 
involving two federal marketing orders and two state commodity 
commissions. The industry would like to streamline its grade standards 
and marketing efforts by moving to a single federal marketing order.
  Moving from four organizations doing the same job to one seems like 
common sense to me, but there is a problem. Current federal statute 
requires that any marketing order that covers pears for processing must 
have equal representation from producers and processors on its 
governing board. Keep in mind that it is producers, not processors, 
that pay the assessments and are subject to the marketing orders' 
quality standards. For this reason a requirement that processors have 
equal representation is unreasonable and is a barrier to the industry's 
plan to consolidate its organizations.
  This legislation will simply remove the requirement that the number 
of producer and processor representatives be equal. If passed, our bill 
would allow the Northwest pear industry to establish a single federal 
marketing order that does not give disproportionate influence to one 
segment of the industry.
  This legislation is supported by the Pacific Northwest pear industry, 
and the processors themselves do not oppose the removal of this 
provision.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. POMEROY. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time on the 
legislation before us, and, on behalf of the gentleman from Texas (Mr. 
Stenholm), I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this 
legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2984.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________