[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 60 (Tuesday, April 5, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H4158-H4159]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           FARM BILL IMPACT SERIES: THE STATE OF AGRICULTURE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Kansas (Mr. Mann) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to deliver the next installment 
of my farm bill impact series--the state of agriculture.
  We are at the end of the first quarter. National Agriculture Month 
just ended, and as Congress prepares to authorize the farm bill, we 
should examine the state of agriculture.
  Agriculture is not just a business; it is a rich heritage and a 
lifestyle. Sadly, the distance from farm to fork has never been 
greater, and there are fewer legislators who have experience on the 
farm. Since Congress will reauthorize the farm bill in 2023, I am 
standing here today to remind Congress that for this legislation to be 
effective in ensuring the food security, and, therefore, the national 
security, of our Nation, we need to get in the field and consider the 
perspectives of farmers, ranchers, and agriculture producers.
  Last month, House Agriculture Committee Republican leader G.T. 
Thompson and I did just that on a tour of my district. We went to 
farms; we toured facilities; we ate at dinner tables; and we listened. 
We did it because hearing from producers is crucial to legislating well 
on matters that concern their livelihoods. Today, I will report to 
Congress on what they have been telling me about the economic, human, 
and natural resources surrounding their work, and what Kansas producers 
believe to be the state of agriculture.
  A farmer or rancher's economic health depends on things like cash and 
assets on hand, protections against the government taxing the farm at 
transfer or death, and well-crafted farm bill programs like crop 
insurance.
  You don't have to look far to know that producers are facing the 
highest input prices in 40 years. Fertilizer is four to five times 
higher than it was at this time last year, if you can even get it. 
Equipment is back-ordered for 6 to 8 months. Parts are at least double 
the cost. On our trip, Republican leader Thompson and I hosted a 
roundtable with Kansas commodity groups, and all of them told me that 
if we cannot get input prices and inflation under control, today's farm 
and tomorrow's crop will be in a much worse condition at this time next 
year.
  The day-to-day trials of operating a successful farm, ranch, or 
agribusiness are challenging enough without worrying about these 
skyrocketing prices. Now, President Biden's budget proposal threatens 
the stepped-up basis and imposes capital gains taxes on farms or 
ranches that have been held in the family for 90 years or more. This 
new farm-killer tax would inflict hundreds of thousands of dollars in 
new capital gains taxes on hardworking Americans and jeopardize family-
owned businesses.
  The one saving grace for most farmers is that the 2018 farm bill 
protected

[[Page H4159]]

and strengthened their opportunity to utilize crop insurance programs, 
even when conditions are dire. Largely, farmers want to keep crop 
insurance in place in the 2023 farm bill. One Kansas farmer even told 
us that Congress needs to ``use a scalpel, not a sledgehammer, as we 
refine crop insurance.''
  Agriculture's human resources include labor on the farm and employees 
at the local Farm Service Agency office. On the farm, folks are hurting 
for workers. We visited one of the first feed yards in the State, and 
the family owners haven't seen a labor shortage with looming 
retirements this bad since before the feed yard's inception in 1951. 
Another co-op owner told us their workforce is down 10 percent with 
more than 70 open positions.
  At the local USDA offices, where Kansans go if they need help from 
the government, staff is also short. Traditionally, there has been a 
fully staffed USDA office in every county in America, but President 
Biden's policies have kept employees at home and turned those offices 
mostly all virtual. I met with farmers who are at a complete loss 
trying to navigate convoluted government websites instead of talking 
face-to-face with USDA employees.
  There is a workforce shortage in every industry, and agriculture is 
no exception. From the farm to government services for the farm, 
agriculture has been experiencing record employee turnover due to 
unnecessary vaccine mandates, enhanced unemployment benefits, and more.
  And in terms of natural resources, we all know America's farmers and 
ranchers are the original conservationists. America has vast amounts of 
natural resources available to its stewards. The biggest threat to 
agriculture's natural resources isn't availability or the weather, but 
Federal Government overreach.
  Late last year, President Biden withdrew the Navigable Waters 
Protection Rule, which sought to undo the harm caused by the Waters of 
the United States rule from 2015, through which the Federal Government 
aimed to control nearly all bodies of water, regardless of their size 
or connection to larger waterways. Because of this mess, farmers and 
ranchers have had to conduct their business under three different 
definitions of what amounts to ``water'' in just 6 years.

  President Biden has also halted drilling on Federal lands and halted 
construction on the Keystone XL pipeline, exacerbating the price and 
shortage of American-made fuel. On our trip, Republican leader Thompson 
and I saw a live oil well operated by a company that produced 60,000 
barrels of oil last October from 363 active wells, and right next door, 
we saw an ethanol plant ready to supply America with dependable liquid 
fuel if President Biden would just ditch his unrealistic and ill-timed 
electric vehicle push. You can't plow with a Prius.
  While I recognize things like protections against the harmful Waters 
of the U.S. rulings and oil and gas drilling do not live within the 
confines of the next farm bill, I also recognize that the protections 
and proper use of America's resources are vital to the strength of 
American food and agriculture.
  The state of agriculture is strong because of the strength of 
American farmers, ranchers, and agriculture producers. Congress has the 
responsibility to get them the resources they need to protect the 
resources they have to feed, fuel, and clothe the world. We must do our 
job.

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