[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 4]
[House]
[Pages 5275-5276]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    FARMERS AIDED BY CROP INSURANCE

  (Mr. LaMALFA asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LaMALFA. Mr. Speaker, just last month, prune growers in the 
Sacramento Valley of California were pretty optimistic about 2016. For 
the first time in a while, they saw some relief from the drought, and 
though crop prices were down, the little prunes on the trees gave hope 
for a healthy harvest with an estimated value of up to $120 million for 
the year.
  Now, just a few weeks later, these same farmers are questioning 
whether there will even be a harvest following very rough weather 
during the critical bloom period. Yet, this is the natural reality of 
the risks faced by farmers and ranchers.
  Before blindly attacking sound agriculture policy, such as crop 
insurance, I ask my colleagues here to take a close look at what it 
takes to feed our Nation, especially in a year like this one where farm 
income is down over 50 percent.
  These policies are not meant for the good crop years or in a good 
harvest. They exist for the terrible crop years.
  Mr. Speaker, weather is unpredictable, as are natural disasters and 
fickle markets. However, we can make sure farmers have access to tools 
that manage these risks in an efficient and cost-

[[Page 5276]]

effective manner. Let's not jeopardize this successful and vital 
program.

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