New York Farm Bureau and the American Farm Bureau Federation are working to protect family farmers' interests as Congress crafts the 2007 Farm Bill.

The 2002 Farm Bill expires on Sept. 30. Either an extension of that bill or a new bill must be in place by that time for current farm, nutrition and conservation programs to continue.

Agriculture and farm programs are only part of the bill. Nutrition programs are a larger component. Spending in that area, including Food Stamps and WIC (The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children), make up 58 percent of the Farm Bill.

NYFB is working with our Congressional representatives, especially Sens. Charles Schumer and Hillary Rodham-Clinton along with Reps. John R. "Randy" Kuhl, R-Hammondsport, and Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-Greenport. The latter two are members of the House Agriculture Committee.

One of the largest issues confronting development of the 2007 Farm Bill is the question of funding additional programs. The 2002 bill was drafted in a time of budget surpluses while the 2007 bill is being drafted in a time of deficits.

Congress is in a "pay-as-you-go" mode. In other words, new spending must be matched by "offsets." NYFB supports a balanced approach between commodity and conservation programs within the 2007 Farm Bill language while maintaining an adequate safety net for commodities and the dairy industry. NYFB will work for farm bill programs that will include increasing specialty crop growers’ access to conservation programs along with increasing marketing and research opportunities. While advocating for more and better access for New York farmers to conservation funding, NYFB wants to maintain strong commodity and dairy counter-cyclical safety net programs.

Lastly, NYFB supports added initiatives for renewable energy sources from agriculture, including cellulosic research.

There have been a number of marker bills introduced regarding the farm bill that provide input into the legislative process.

There is the Schumer bill (S.1424), the NE Marker Bill, (HR 2144), and the Kind Bill (HR 1551, S 919). Numerous New York representatives have signed as cosponsors to the bills.

These bills will not be the farm bill but will provide ideas that may be incorporated into a final bill.

According to a report on www.agweb.com, the Farm Bill is delayed in committee.

"The Farm Bill markup by the full House Ag Committee, originally slated to begin June 26, has been postponed, likely over a lack of consensus and unknowns regarding farm bill funding," the Web site reported.

AgWeb analyst Jim Wiesemeyer reports that the 2007 Farm Bill likely will not be a mere "extension" of the 2002 version.

"The reason is that conservation and nutrition programs have already received multibillion-dollar increases in funding and thus their stakeholders would not support any overall extension of the 2002 omnibus bill," Wiesemeyer writes.

"Some commodities that were clear winners under the initial chairman's mark of the commodity title (wheat and soybean growers with their increased supports) are now losers and will be looking to friends to include similar language in further Farm Bill action. But as previously noted, to accomplish any so-called 'rebalancing' will take budget offsets because if you extend the budget-neutral 2002 Farm Bill commodity title, any changes that would increase costs must be offset by changes or budget cuts elsewhere."