[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 129 (Wednesday, November 15, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2052]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           FARM RESERVOIR ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. TERRY EVERETT

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 15, 2006

  Mr. EVERETT. Mr. Speaker, I am introducing legislation today, along 
with my colleagues Reps. Jo Bonner and Mike Rogers, to assist American 
farmers in dealing with drought conditions and enable them to increase 
their farm productivity. The need for on-the-farm drought management 
has become increasingly evident as farmers and the government struggle 
to keep ahead of the effects of Mother Nature. In recent years, 
droughts have had a costly impact on agricultural producers throughout 
the country, and the current drought conditions for the 2005 and 2006 
crop years dramatically underscore the devastating toll these natural 
disasters have on our Nation's farmers and ranchers. Ad hoc government 
disaster assistance is often slow and inadequate, and frankly, a better 
use of tax dollars would be to help farmers take steps to minimize the 
impact of drought on their crop before the disaster strikes.
  The Farm Reservoir Act would provide cost-share assistance to 
agriculture producers for the construction of reservoirs on their 
farms. For many farmers, pumping water from streams, lakes and wells 
during the growing season is not an option. However, by collecting and 
storing surface water in reservoirs during the off-season, when 
rainfall and stream levels are typically high, farmers can attain an 
effective source of irrigation. As population growth places more demand 
on water resources, we will need new sources of irrigation water. On-
farm irrigation storage, which is made possible by my legislation, has 
the potential to greatly expand agricultural irrigation capacity and 
make farming more productive. Under the Farm Reservoir Act, cost share 
assistance would be provided through the Environmental Quality 
Incentives Program (EQIP) to assist farmers with the construction of 
reservoirs. The maximum amount of cost share assistance is 50 percent 
of the cost of the reservoir. In order to qualify, a project must meet 
EQIP eligibility requirements and be deemed eligible based on its cost-
effectiveness. The producer must maintain agricultural production on 
the land for at least 5 years.

                          ____________________