[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 103 (Wednesday, June 19, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H4775-H4776]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
INTRODUCING THE FEED EMERGENCY ENHANCEMENT DURING DISASTERS ACT
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
South Dakota (Mr. Johnson) for 5 minutes.
Mr. JOHNSON of South Dakota. Mr. Speaker, it is wet in farm country.
In fact, our corn planting is so far behind that many South Dakota
producers aren't quite sure how they are going to feed the 5 million
cattle that are in our State.
Now, these producers don't want a new government program. They cannot
feed their cattle dollar bills. What they want, what they need, is the
flexibility to help themselves.
That is why Congresswoman Angie Craig and I introduced the FEEDD Act.
It would provide the USDA the flexibility needed so that producers can
go in and hay, graze, or chop cover crops that are on prevent plant
acres and do that before November 1. Moving that date from November 1
to September 1 could make a real impact. The forage we need will come
from those acres. It will come from that flexibility.
Already this bill has received 27 co-sponsors and has been endorsed
by 17
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national ag groups. I look forward to working with them, to working
with the Agriculture Committee, to working with House leadership to
move this concept forward.
We also have another option. USDA could do this administratively, and
we continue to discuss with them the opportunity to get this success in
that way.
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