[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 87 (Monday, June 11, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3890-S3892]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                          Bipartisan Farm Bill

  Mr. President, I also rise to speak to the important bipartisan 
legislation we are considering which is commonly known as the farm 
bill.
  This legislation is critical not just to our farmers and ranchers and 
rural communities but to every segment of our population and our 
economy. We have heard from others highlighting that this bill supports 
more than 16 million jobs across our country.
  In fact, the Colorado Department of Agriculture estimates that in my 
home State alone the agricultural-related industry generates 
approximately $20 billion in economic activity supporting more than 
100,000 jobs. This is a principal reason why I urge the Senate to 
consider and pass a 2012 farm bill.
  This bill will unquestionably strengthen our economy and help to grow 
jobs that support the livelihood of Coloradans and Americans in both 
rural and urban communities. That is what our constituents in 
Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Arkansas are demanding we do--work together 
across the aisle to pass bills that will help put people back to work.
  I want to take a second or two to thank the members of the Senate 
Agriculture Committee, especially Chairwoman Stabenow and Ranking 
Member Roberts, for their efforts to bring a bipartisan bill to the 
Senate floor.
  As with most of our work in the Senate--and when we are at our best--
compromise is key, and it rules the day. I am pleased we are now 
discussing a bill that will provide certainty to our farmers and 
ranchers over the next 5 years.
  Let me tell you some of the other things the bill will do. It will 
improve opportunities for farmers and ranchers to enter the 
agricultural sector, it will

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streamline and maintain valuable programs that support voluntary 
conservation practices on the farm, and it will responsibly extend 
important nutrition programs, all the while reducing our deficit by 
more than $23 billion. Yes, you heard that correctly--while reducing 
our Federal budget deficit by over $23 billion.

  There are many important aspects to each title in the bill, but I 
want to take a few minutes to speak specifically about the forestry 
title, particularly given the news of the large wildfires in my State 
and in New Mexico and other portions of the West. The forestry portion 
of the farm bill has been of particular interest to me and my 
constituents because of its bearing on my State's economy and on the 
public safety of so many Coloradans.
  Good stewardship of our forests not only provides private sector 
opportunities to enhance stewardship of our public lands, it also 
protects wilderness and roadless areas, all the while sustaining a 
strong tourism industry. Indeed, activities such as hiking, skiing, 
shooting, and angling contribute over $10 billion a year to Colorado's 
economy, supporting 100,000 Colorado jobs.
  The Senate Agriculture Committee did a commendable job in building a 
responsible approach to addressing forest health. I have a few 
additional concerns that I hope we can address during the amendment 
process. But I want to emphasize the importance of this title in 
particular because of the need to address a growing emergency in our 
western forests caused by the largest bark beetle outbreak in recorded 
history.
  From the west coast, through the Rocky Mountains, all the way to the 
Black Hills of the Dakotas, this infestation has killed more than 41 
million acres of trees, and it is anticipated to continue to kill 
millions more in the years to come as it spreads. In my State alone--
and it breaks my heart to share this with you--the bark beetle is 
expected to kill every single lodgepole pine. When that takes effect, 
when every tree is killed, then 100,000 trees a day are going to fall. 
I know that number seems impossible to imagine. But 100,000 trees would 
be falling down daily once the epidemic ends by killing all of these 
trees.
  These falling trees have real and often devastating impacts on the 
lives of everyday westerners.
  I have put up a picture for the viewers to show what it looks like 
when entire stands of infested trees are blown over because of heavy 
winds and other conditions.
  Massive forest mortality across the West, such as what is shown in 
this picture, has a wide range of repercussions that affect municipal 
and agricultural water supplies and tourism economies. It also 
increases wildfire risk and, of course, it would affect human health 
and safety.
  The Forest Service--our U.S. Forest Service--has sought to prioritize 
treating affected forests--like this one shown in this picture--where 
there is a direct and immediate risk to human health and safety, and 
this legislation will help them to further accomplish needed treatment 
in our forests.
  In Colorado and southern Wyoming, the treatment prioritization 
includes 215,000 acres of wildland-urban interface that poses the 
greatest fire risk to urban areas. Treatment prioritization will 
include thousands of miles of roads and trails, hundreds of miles of 
power lines, and hundreds of popular recreation sites and multiple 
skiing areas that are critical to our tourism economy.
  This second picture gives us an idea of the real risk of wildfire to 
critical infrastructure, such as power lines. In addition, water 
supplies, without which the West would not know civilization as we see 
it today, are at risk because of the damage wildfires can cause the 
watershed and because falling, dead trees can obstruct water 
infrastructure such as ditches, gates, pipelines, and storage 
facilities.
  Another tool that is permanently reauthorized in the farm bill title 
which enhances how we manage our forests and would hopefully prevent 
this kind of a catastrophic fire is called stewardship contracting. 
Stewardship contract authority is a tool used by the Forest Service and 
the Bureau of Land Management to contract with local businesses to fell 
and treat dangerous stands of ailing trees and in so doing improve the 
health of our forests. These contracts help sustain rural communities, 
restore and maintain healthy forest ecosystems, and they provide a 
continuous source of local income and employment. The authority allows 
for multiple-year contracts, ensuring job stability and a consistent 
supply of wood products to mills not only across Colorado but, frankly, 
across our country.
  Stewardship contracts have helped clean up more than 545,625 acres 
nationally through approximately 900 contracts, with more than 80 
awarded in Colorado alone. This is a track record of which we can be 
proud. These stewardship contracts also provide for critical 
restoration needs in the areas at risk of catastrophic wildfire. 
Moreover, any receipts retained by forest management activities are 
available without further appropriations and can be reinvested locally 
to complete other service work needed.
  On the list of successes as well is that the contracts have helped to 
make productive use of more than 1.8 million green tons of biomass for 
energy. Stewardship contracting has helped to treat more than 200,000 
hazardous acres to reduce the risk of catastrophic fire within the 
wildland-urban interface areas, where wildfire poses the greatest risk. 
That is where forests bump up against local communities.
  In a time when wildfire can easily become a multimillion-dollar 
challenge for every level of government and as the bark beetle epidemic 
continues to present a significant threat to our communities and their 
livelihood, it is necessary that we pass a farm bill with a robust 
forestry title.
  Just this weekend another wildfire broke out near Fort Collins, CO. 
This is currently an uncontained wildfire, which is now more than 22 
square miles, and it is in an area where stands of lodgepole pines have 
become damaged by beetle infestation and therefore increasingly 
susceptible to wildfire.
  At home, we are all closely watching the High Park fire, the images 
of the flames and the overwhelming smoke and ash clouds. We all share a 
great concern for the 2,600 families who have been displaced and the 
devastation this fire could bring to northern Colorado communities. My 
thoughts go to all the firefighters, in the air and on the ground, and 
we wish and pray that they will be safe and effective. The fire is 
currently zero percent contained, which is a reflection of the extreme 
weather and dry ground conditions. The High Park fire is an unfortunate 
example of why we need a strong forestry title in the farm bill and why 
treatment of the affected areas is a must-do priority.
  We manage our forests so they are healthy and we reduce fire risk and 
we protect water supplies and bolster our economy. As we watch the bark 
beetle epidemic become the largest threat to forest health, now is the 
time to ensure that we can equip the Forest Service, conservationists, 
private landowners, and industry with the tools they need to 
cooperatively address the health of America's forests.
  This is a real opportunity for us. This farm bill is a work of 
bipartisan compromise. We need to do more of that here in the Halls of 
Congress. Let's get this done because provisions in this bill's 
forestry title will streamline Forest Service administrative processes 
and enhance the agency's ability to partner with the private sector so 
that they can conduct more efficient and effective treatments for 
insect and disease infestations.
  Let's get to work. Let's discuss the merits of the farm bill. Let's 
work to include a robust forestry title that addresses the critical 
needs in America's forests.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Arkansas.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. President, I rise today to speak to the Agriculture 
Reform, Food, and Jobs Act or the farm bill.
  The chair, ranking member, and all of the members of the Senate 
Agriculture Committee have worked very hard in a bipartisan manner on 
this legislation and we have certainly come a very long way. But we 
still have far to go, and I think that with the leadership of the 
chairwoman and other members of this body that recognize the need for a 
safety net that meets the needs of all crops and regions that

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we will eventually get there--and I thank the chair for her strong 
leadership. The fact that we are discussing this bill on the floor of 
the Senate right now is a testament to it.
  This Nation has a diverse fabric of agriculture with a variety of 
risks, and writing a farm bill that serves as a safety net for all 
crops and regions is no easy task. Yet, this is a responsibility we 
must embrace to ensure that the United States continues to have the 
safest, most reliable, and most affordable supply of food and fiber in 
the world.
  Our Nation is at a crossroads and we are in desperate need of fiscal 
discipline. I am pleased that this farm bill includes important 
reforms, reduces spending by more than is required of this committee, 
and eliminates duplicative or obsolete government programs to ensure 
that we are getting the most out of every dollar we invest in 
agriculture.
  The Forestry title contains important improvements that will benefit 
Arkansas's forestry industry. The improvements to the USDA Bio-based 
Markets program in the managers' package will allow forest products to 
be included in the program. The current USDA Bio-based markets program 
favors foreign products over our American forest products, which puts 
American workers at a disadvantage. So I am happy with the progress on 
this issue, and I appreciate the effort to promote and purchase our 
renewable, home-grown products.
  Crop insurance also contains some improvements, and the provisions 
for irrigated and non-irrigated enterprise units, supplemental coverage 
options, and yield plugs will help many producers who may have 
otherwise been left unprotected by the elimination of direct payments 
and the counter-cyclical program.
  At the same time, this is not a perfect bill and I have serious 
concerns about the Commodity title and the impact it will have on 
southern producers and the planting decisions they make. I also have 
concerns about some missed opportunities in terms of eliminating waste 
and abuse in the Nutrition title.
  The Commodity title, as it is currently written, will have a 
devastating impact on southern agriculture which relies heavily on 
irrigation and, therefore, benefits less from crop insurance. 
Furthermore, the new revenue plan is designed to augment crop 
insurance, so this new program leaves gaping holes in the Southern 
Safety Net. Even with a reference price, this revenue plan may not be 
strong enough for our farmers to get operating loans. For example, most 
estimates find that rice would lose more than 70 percent of its 
baseline, far more than their fair share. However, this is not about 
just one crop. Every farmer in America knows the real threat of multi-
year price declines, and we need a Commodity title that treats all 
crops and regions fairly.
  I am very concerned that this proposal is couched in the assumption 
that we will continue to have these high commodity prices. A revenue 
plan is attractive when prices are high, but I am not sure there is 
anything in this plan that protects producers from a multi-year price 
decline and an untested, one-size-fits-all program, with no producer 
choice could leave many producers vulnerable.
  Throughout this process, I have said that anything that goes too far 
in any direction can violate the core principles of this effort. I am 
afraid that this Commodity title does that in its current form.
  It is my opinion that we could have done more to eliminate waste and 
abuse in the Nutrition title and ensure that we are getting the most 
out of these investments and that they are, in fact, going to the 
neediest among us. We should fully close the LIHEAP loophole, which 
artificially inflates benefits for SNAP recipients, and there are other 
things we can do to save money without reducing benefits and reinvest 
in other critical nutrition areas and deficit reduction. When we tell 
Americans that we cannot find more than $4 billion in savings from 
programs that account for nearly 80 percent of all agriculture 
spending, I can not think that they would believe we are trying hard 
enough.
  But just because there is not full agreement, does not mean that our 
farmers stop needing a safety net. I am committed to continuing the 
fight for a safety net that works not just for Arkansans--but for all 
farmers, of all crops, in all regions of the country. With a 
responsible producer choice, I believe we can build the consensus 
necessary to usher a farm bill through the entire legislative process 
and see it signed into law this year.
  We can do this while preserving the safety net, making reforms, and 
achieving deficit reduction. I am confident that we can craft a bill 
that we are all proud of, and I look forward to continuing to work with 
the chair, ranking member, and all the members of Congress and seeing 
this through.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio.
  Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak as 
in morning business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.