[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 14502]
[From the U.S. 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 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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