Policy Updates and Issue News September 2018

The House has recessed for a month until after the midterm elections.  The Senate is consumed with the Supreme Court nominee.   The farm bill is still in limbo on the Hill. “Milk” is milk?  National and state Granges step up on opioids and other health care priorities.  Grange has concerns for local TV programming.  U.S.-Mexico -Canada and Korean trade deals come to agreement.  Japan commits to negotiate a trade pact.  Meanwhile, the U.S. has slapped China with new tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods and China is expected to retaliate with tariffs against U. S. agriculture products.

Farm Bill

There’ll be no farm bill now until after the November 6 elections.  Although the Senate is still in session for much of October, the House has adjourned until November 13.  However, leaders of both the Senate and House Agriculture Committees have committed to continue their dialogue toward farm bill compromises on the bill’s 12 titles during this down time.  We hear lots of talk around Washington that if Democrats gain control of the House, they may not vote on a farm bill until next year when they have more control.  Colin Peterson (D-7, MN), ranking Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee insists he is not interested in delaying the farm bill past the November-December lame-duck session.

The House GOP’s insistence on tightening work requirements for food stamp recipients isn’t gaining traction with Senate negotiators.  A tough battle has developed between House Chairman Conaway and Senate Chairman Roberts over a provision in the House bill that would end payments on base acres that have not been planted to program crop for the past 10 years.  There are also major differences over the conservation title.  The House bill eliminates the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) and uses the savings to fund the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and other House priorities both within and outside the conservation title.

Even though the current farm bill expired on September 30, most major farm bill provisions enjoy permanent authorization which allows them to be funded under the recent continuing resolution (CR).   The CR passed by congress and signed by the President will fund most programs of the federal government until December 7.

 However , many of the more recent minor farm bill programs are not covered by permanent funding authority and will not have funding until a new farm bill or current farm bill extension is passed in December.   These include value-added producer grants, assistance to disadvantaged and veteran farmers and ranchers, farmers market and local food promotion, organic certification cost-share, foreign market development, and several more.

Industries Battle Over “Milk” Label

The dairy industry has long sought to restrict the use of the term “milk”, “yogurt” and “cheese” to the product of lactating animals.  Recent comments by FDA Commissioner Gottlieb indicate his agency may be listening.   Gottlieb says implementing clear and transparent food labels and claims are a high priority for him.  The rising demand for plant-based products has created a growing number of new food choices in supermarket aisles.  The FDA has concerns that the labeling of some plant-based products may lead consumers to believe these have the same nutritional attributes as dairy products even though these products can vary widely in nutritional content.  The FDA has opened a Request for Information (RFI) to receive new data submissions as it seeks to modernize its Standards of Identity which define characteristics, ingredients and quality of specific foods. 

Additional SNAP Options for Hurricane Victims

USDA will allow food stamp participants to buy hot food with their benefits through October 31.  Normally, hot foods and foods ready for immediate consumption cannot be purchased with SNAP benefits.  The waiver is meant to support those Florence victims evacuated to shelters and those lacking access to cooking facilities.

Comcast-NBCU Merger Concerns 

The National Grange and 21 state Granges cosigned a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee and Assistant Attorney General in preparation for an October 3 committee hearing on antitrust issues.  The Granges asked that the expiring 2011 Comcast-NBC-Universal merger conditions be extended.  Specifically, a binding arbitration agreement must be continued and safeguards must be put in place to protect rural consumers from high prices, inaccessibility to programming and blocking competition.

USDA e-Connectivity Pilot Projects

The National Grange submitted comments to Secretary Perdue encouraging him to include the use of TV white spaces spectrum in the USDA’s rural e-Connectivity Pilot Program.  TVWS work by utilizing vacant spectrum in the UHF television band to deliver broadband to underserved rural areas.  The rural broadband pilot program was made possible by a $600 million appropriation by Congress.  The USDA invited comments on implementation of the pilot program.  In addition, the National Grange supported the Federal Communications Commission decision to provide $4.5 billion from its Mobility Fund over the next decade to deploy 4G LTE broadband primarily to rural areas that would not be served in absence of government support.

5G Faces Policy Battles

Lightning fast 5G or fifth generation connectivity is a reality but getting it to customers will be a challenge.  Building out 5G networks depend on both large cell towers and a profusion of small local cells that reach a few hundred feet and require a large number of sites.  These sites can be utility poles, buildings or other existing locations.   Challenges include municipality permitting and fees, rights of way, zoning, fees for pole and building attachment, and more.  National Grange president Betsy Huber serves on the FCC subcommittee that is looking for ways to break down these barriers.

Food Insecurity Down Slightly

Food insecurity in the United States as a whole has dropped from 12.3 percent of the population to 11.8 percent, the sixth straight year of decline since the recession according to the USDA.  The South has the highest insecurity rate at 13.4 percent followed by the Midwest at 11.7 Percent, the West at 10.7 percent and the Northeast at 9.9 percent.

Squirrels Chomp on New England

A squirrel population explosion in New England is more than a nuisance.  The bushy tailed rodents are eating apples, peaches, pumpkins, berries, gourds and raiding corn fields.  A bumper crop of acorns last year is believed to have contributed to the squirrel explosion.  

“Human vanity can best be served by a reminder that, whatever his accomplishments, his sophistication, his artistic pretention, man owes his very existence to a six-inch layer of top soil – and the fact that it rains.”   ~  Richard L. Evans

“Culture is the intersection of people and life itself.  It’s how we deal with life, love, death, birth, disappointment…all of that is expressed in culture.”  ~ Wendell Pierce

“Culture makes people understand each other better.  And if they understand each other better in their soul, it is easier to overcome the economic and political barriers.  But first, they have to understand that their neighbor is, in the end, just like them, with the same problems, the same questions.”  ~ Paulo Coelho

Note: Last month, apparently the quote from former Florida congressman Claude Pepper was conflated with a quote from Marcus Garvey by the email monster.  We would like to correct that one and add one for good measure:

“If more politicians in this country were thinking about the next generation instead of the next election, it might be better for the United States and the world.”  ~ Claude Pepper

“The mistake a lot of politicians make is in forgetting they’ve been appointed and thinking they’ve been anointed.”   ~ Claude Pepper