[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 120 (Thursday, July 13, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2447-S2448]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
Farm Bill
Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, the farm bills that we take up every few
years are essential pieces of legislation. They help provide the tools
and resources that farmers and ranchers need to carry out their task of
feeding our Nation. And with parts of the 2018 farm bill expiring in
the next few months, passing our next farm bill needs to be one of
Congress's top priorities during the remainder of the year.
The Senate Agriculture Committee has been working on this year's
legislation, but there is more work to be done. And we need to make
sure that we don't delay in getting this bill over the finish line.
Farmers and ranchers already face a lot of uncertainty in their
profession--few jobs are as subject to market fluctuations or the whims
of the weather--and the least that we can do here in Congress is make
sure they know that the critical programs won't be expiring and they
will continue to have access to essential resources that help make
farming and ranching possible.
As a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee and a Senator from a
State where agriculture is not just ``a'' way of life but ``the'' way
of life, the farm bill is always one of my top priorities.
I have had the privilege of helping to craft four farm bills during
my time in Congress; and, for me, the process always begins and ends
with farmers and ranchers.
I have been gearing up for the 2023 farm bill pretty much since work
finished on the last one. And, last year, I kicked off a series of
roundtables with agriculture producers to hear firsthand from farmers
and ranchers what they need from this year's farm bill.
These formal discussions, along with the many informal conversations
I regularly have with farmers and ranchers, have provided me with
invaluable feedback, and I am working on a number of measures for this
year's farm bill that reflect the input I have received from South
Dakota producers.
One thing that farmers have made clear is the critical role of the
farm safety net. Crop insurance is the cornerstone of the farm safety
net, and it needs to be maintained and, to the extent possible,
strengthened in the next farm bill.
Currently, the Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage
programs, which help offset losses when prices for agricultural
commodities drop, are not always proving sufficient. And one of my top
priorities for this year's bill is improving commodity and livestock
programs to ensure that farmers and ranchers have sufficient backup.
I am also working to make the Conservation Reserve Program a more
effective option for producers and landowners. Currently, the program
doesn't
[[Page S2448]]
sufficiently support grazing infrastructure, which limits the benefit
of participating for some producers.
And the annual payment limit for this program hasn't changed since it
was first created in 1985. To address these issues, I introduced the
Conservation Reserve Program Improvement Act, which will provide more
flexibility for producers and increase the payment cap to account for
increased land values. And I will work to ensure that the CRP
Improvement Act is included in the final farm bill.
In addition to farmed crops, livestock production is an integral part
of South Dakota's agricultural economy. And one of my top priorities
for this year's farm bill is addressing some of the challenges facing
South Dakota livestock producers in getting their products to
Americans' tables.
The last few years have revealed some vulnerabilities in our food
supply chain that had an outsized impact on agricultural and livestock
producers.
Early pandemic closures, for example, of some meat processing plants
led to bottlenecks in processing livestock and delays for a lot of
ranchers, and this led to supply shortages and empty cases at the
grocery store. Shortages caused by lack of processing capacity, not a
lack of livestock. It has become clear that livestock producers need
more processing options, and one way we can reduce dependence on the
big packers is by expanding smaller meatpackers' capacity.
I have introduced the Strengthening Local Processing Act to help
smaller processors invest in the infrastructure they need to expand. My
bill would also allow more State-inspected meat products to be sold
across State lines, which would open up new markets for small meat
processors and the farmers and ranchers who supply them. I have also
introduced legislation--the bipartisan American Beef Labeling Act--to
require the U.S. Trade representative to develop a World Trade
Organization-compliant means of reinstating mandatory country of origin
labeling for beef.
Under our current system, beef that is neither born nor raised in the
United States but is simply finished here can be labeled ``product of
the United States,'' even if the only American thing about the beef is
the plastic that it is wrapped in, if that.
That is unfair to American cattle producers and misleading to
consumers, and I am pleased that USDA is working on a proposed rule to
close the ``product of the U.S.A.'' labeling loophole.
And I will continue to work to get my American Beef Labeling Act
included in the 2023 farm bill so that consumers can be confident that
any beef labeled ``product of the U.S.A.'' really came from American
cattle producers.
New practices and technologies can be game-changers for farmers, and
without reliable data, it can be unclear whether these practices and
technologies will have positive impact. And that is why, earlier this
year, I introduced the Agriculture Innovation Act, which would make it
easier for producers and trusted researchers to use USDA data to assess
the impact of various production practices, so that producers can gauge
whether these practices are right for their farm or ranch operation.
And, of course, while the macrolevel data USDA collects can provide
valuable information, farmers are already beginning to look to the next
frontier, collecting realtime, microlevel data from their own fields.
And I have introduced the Promoting Precision Agriculture Act to help
advance precision agriculture technology and to allow more farmers to
take advantage of this data revolution. And because without a reliable
internet connection, precision agriculture technology doesn't get very
far, I am also working to ensure that my bill to streamline USDA's
broadband authorities and ensure that funding goes to areas where at
least 90 percent of households lack broadband access is included in
this year's farm bill.
Producing the food that fills Americans' dinner tables is no easy
task, and we owe the men and women who do this important work the
certainty that the programs they depend on will be there for them. I
hope that leaders in both houses of Congress will put passing the 2023
farm bill at the very top of our to-do list.
And I will do everything I can to advance this important legislation.
And today and every day, I will continue to make farmers and ranchers
my priority.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. LUJAN). The Senator from Arizona.