Nebraska producers & House Committee debate over farm policy
07 Mar '06
3 min read
House Committee on Agriculture Chairman Bob Goodlatte and Ranking Minority Member Collin Peterson convened a field hearing in Nebraska City, Nebraska to review the 2002 Farm Bill.
Twelve members of the Committee attended and heard from two panels of witnesses about a variety of farm policy issues including commodity programs, the farm economy, renewable energy, rural development, and conservation.
“To ensure that American agriculture remains competitive and that our producers can continue to provide fellow Americans with a safe, affordable, and wholesome food supply, they must be equipped with an adequate safety net.”
“As we travel throughout the nation, the feedback we receive from producers will give us a good sense of how these policies work in practice and what improvements can be made within the budgetary constraints we face in Washington,” said Chairman Goodlatte in his opening statement.
The agriculture industry contributes more than $9 billion to Nebraska's economy each year and employs 21 percent of all Nebraskans. The hearing was hosted by members of the Nebraska delegation including Tom Osborne and Jeff Fortenberry at the Lied Conference Center.
“World Trade Organization negotiations hang over the consideration of a new farm bill and there is considerable concern as to how quickly a new farm bill can be written while these WTO concerns are out there. I think we need to go ahead with the farm bill and try to shape theWTO negotiations as best we can rather than be in a reactive mode,” said Rep. Osborne.
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