[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 128 (Thursday, September 20, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H6154-H6155]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STILL NO FARM BILL
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from
South Dakota (Mrs. Noem) for 5 minutes.
Mrs. NOEM. Mr. Speaker, this is the second-to-the-last day that we'll
be here and be in session before we head home to our districts, and we
still do not have a farm bill that gives certainty to our producers and
our ranchers across the country. In a little over a week, the 2008 farm
bill is going to expire.
While many of these programs will continue into the future for months
ahead, we have an opportunity to actually save money and give other
producers certainty as they begin planning for the coming years.
Last week, I sat down and I visited with Mike and Lori. They're
producers from near the town of Huron, South Dakota. They raise corn,
soybeans, and beef cattle. And this year was particularly difficult for
them in light of the drought situation that producers in South Dakota
were facing.
{time} 1010
Thankfully, they had programs such as crop insurance that helped them
manage their risk in such a difficult year. They wrote me a letter on
the importance of the farm bill, and I want to read a portion of that
letter to you:
We are experiencing a severe drought in our area this year.
We put up half the hay that we normally do. Dugouts are
starting to dry up, and crop yields will be down
significantly. Crop insurance will be extremely important to
offset lost crop production and lost revenue due to poor crop
conditions. Crop insurance is a vital part of providing
stability to our income and allowing us to stay a viable
family farm dedicated to growing a safe, affordable food
supply for a growing world.
They went on in their letter to describe exactly what this means to
their family at home:
We have a 6-year-old son and a 4-year-old daughter. We tell
them daily how important our jobs are as farmers, how we are
truly feeding the world. They are taking true pride and
ownership of that, and passing a good farm bill only helps
stabilize their dreams, their futures--and ours.
A 5-year farm bill gives us the stability to plan ahead for
our operation long term. With the limited time Congress has
to pass a farm bill before the current one expires, I would
encourage lawmakers to look to rural America and realize how
much work we can get done in a week. We know that, if the
farm bill is made a priority, there is still enough time to
get one passed. Thank you again for your work, and we urge
Congress to pass a farm bill now.
This past week, I was traveling through the middle of our State, in
an area that has been hit particularly hard by the drought. I stopped
at a truck stop and visited with many producers who were there filling
up with fuel and getting supplies to head back out to the field. You
see, right now in South Dakota, producers are planting a winter wheat
crop, and they're having to make the decision: Do they put that crop
into dry ground, or do they wait and see if they get a farm bill and
crop insurance into the future so that they have the certainty to make
sure that their risk is managed?
Many of those producers were electing not to plant. They were waiting
to see if they could get rain and get a program that would actually
keep their families in business. Some were putting it in the ground,
showing that they truly are brave producers who have little faith that
the skies will open up and that next year will be different.
I tell you that they and Mike and Lori and other producers across the
State of South Dakota and across this country who have been
particularly hit in these tough times are looking to us here in
Congress to provide them certainty during this drought. The farm bill
is one of the reasons that our family farmers are able to stay in
business during tough years. Many other programs in the farm bill give
them the stability and certainty, which, in turn, gives every American
the certainty in having a reliable, affordable food supply.
I ran for Congress to bring more common sense to this place and to be
an efficient and effective leader for South Dakota. We have an
opportunity to get a farm bill done this year that provides a safety
net and real reforms for our producers and cost savings for the
taxpayers. While the clock hasn't run out yet, I think it is important
that we get our work done on time, and I am disappointed that it hasn't
been scheduled for a vote.
Sept. 11, 2012.
Hon. Kristi Noem,
Cannon House Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Rep. Noem: Thank you for the opportunity to meet with
you during our trip to Washington, D.C., to talk about
passing the farm bill. My husband, Mike, and I are both
third-generation farmers. We have a diversified crop and beef
cattle operation 25 miles southwest of Huron, S.D., where we
raise corn, soybeans and 250 head of cattle.
We are experiencing a severe drought in our area this year.
We put up half the hay that we normally do, dugouts are
starting to dry up and crop yields will be down
significantly. Crop insurance will be extremely important to
offset lost crop production and lost revenue due to poor crop
conditions. Crop insurance is a vital part of providing
stability to our income and allowing us to stay a viable
family farm dedicated to growing a safe, affordable food
supply for a growing world. We were fortunate to have
utilized the EQIP Program to install two water
[[Page H6155]]
sources in two pastures to provide drinking water for our
cattle which has been vital during this drought. We were also
able to participate in the Stewardship Program through NRCS.
Those conservation practices helped retain subsoil moisture
which has been critical in the drought conditions we've
faced.
We have a 6-year-old son and 4-year-old daughter. We tell
them daily how important our jobs are as farmers, how we are
truly feeding the world. They are taking true pride and
ownership of that and passing a good farm bill only helps
stabilize their dreams and ours.
A five-year farm bill gives us the stability to plan ahead
for our operation long term. With the limited time Congress
has to pass a farm bill before the current one expires, I
would encourage lawmakers to look to rural America and
realize how much work we can get done in a week. We know that
if the farm bill is made a priority, there is enough time to
get this bill passed. Thank you again for your work and we
urge Congress to pass a farm bill now.
Sincerely,
Mike and Lori Peskey,
Iroquois, S.D.
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