Hill Heat

From CQ.com: Broader Policy Overhaul May Be in Store as Senate Takes Up Farm Bill.

Summary:

• Senate will take up bill after August recess; making the September 30 deadline unlikely
• Sen. Harkin, Ag Committee chair, plans much higher land-conservation program funding than in House bill (HR 2419)
• Harkin and Grassley (R-Iowa) plan to cap annual payments to $250,000 from current cap of $360,000; HR 2419 has no cap
• Sen. Lugar (R-Ind.) supports FARM21, Ron Kind’s proposal (H.AMDT 700)
• Sens. Durbin (D-Ill.) and Brown (D-Ohio) introduced the Farm Safety Net Improvement Act last week, which ties “counter-cyclical” payments (aka crop subsidy payments) to revenue (price times yield) instead of the target price (see the American Farmland Trust page)
• Nutrition advocates are looking for better than the $4 billion increase in the House bill
• Tax provisions to pay for the Senate bill will generate Republican resistance

Full text below the fold.

By 231-191, the House passed the farm bill (HR 2419) today. Highlights:

• The bill funds the energy title, which funds biofuels research and development, energy efficiency programs and renewable-energy projects, by reversing $6.1 billion over ten years of the offshore drilling royalty payments mistakenly granted to oil and gas companies
• The bill found additional funding for food stamps by by ending a practice known as “earnings stripping,” which lets foreign-owned companies shift income to a country with lower tax rates, delivering $7.8 billion over 10 years
• The Senate is expected to start debating its version of the legislation after the August recess. Current programs expire Sept. 30 and it is unlikely Congress will be able to complete action on a new five-year bill by then. Instead, a short-term extension of the law is likely to be necessary.
• The $5 million per year Community Food Projects program to fight food insecurity by funding projects that promote the self-sufficiency of low-income communities was zeroed out.