Policy Updates and Issue News February 2016

The President’s Budget

President Obama released his proposed FY’17 government budget to Congress February 9. Its progressive vision of governance could influence the upcoming presidential election and define much of the President’s legacy. Among popular bipartisan items in the president’s budget plan are $1 billion investments in cancer research, prescription drug abuse and heroin-use treatment. The spending blueprint also proposes a $19 billion investment in federal cybersecurity infrastructure. USDA’s agriculture research and education budget would receive additional funding for research grants and in-house research on safe water, climate change response, soil health, food safety and qualityf, pollinator health, antimicrobial resistance, foreign animal diseases, and avian influenza. One of the most unpopular proposals is a $10.25 tax per barrel of oil to fund a slew of clean air initiatives. Agriculture has given a frigid reception to the president’s proposal to cut more than $1 billion from crop insurance in fiscal 2017. Also unpopular among growers is the proposal to initiate user fees for regulatory implementation of the FDA’s Food Safety Modernization (FSMA). Missing from the administration’s budget are attempts to rein in spending for Social Security and Medicare, the main drivers of the nation’s debt. Instead, the budget addresses the debt problem by increasing the revenue/tax side of the balance sheet.

Now it’s Congress’ turn at the budget process, adopting the sections it likes striking the sections it doesn’t like and substituting its own priorities. The twelve Senate and House appropriations committees will attempt to finish their work in the coming months before another omnibus spending bill becomes necessary for FY’17 on October 1.

Congress’ Unfinished Business

Congress heads into election year with some major unfinished business affecting food and agriculture. School nutrition programs and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission need to be reauthorized. Several states are poised to require labeling on foods containing GMO ingredients unless Congress preempts with a federal standard. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade pact will be ready for action by Congress. Opponents of the administration’s Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule will continue attempts to keep the regulation from taking effect. Here’s where several major issues stand:

• GMO Labeling: The easiest legislative fix to preempt state labeling laws was to insert language in the must-pass omnibus spending bill back in December. That didn’t happen because of objections in the Senate. Last fall there appeared to be growing support for a voluntary certified GMO-free label which protects the consumer’s right to know. However opposition grew from within the organic food industry. Apparently organic producers feared a GMO-free label would compete with food labeled organic. The food industry, led by the Grocery Manufacturers Association, proposes a new SmartLabel smartphone disclosure system to provide consumers the information they want about food ingredients including the presence of GMOs and allergens, nutrition information as well as environmental, religious and sustainability factors. Six Senators including Blumenthal and Murphy of Connecticut, Sanders and Leahy of Vermont, Markey of Massachusetts and Tester of Montana are questioning the feasibility of SmartLabel at this time since a third of consumers do not have smartphones. Secretary Vilsack on behalf of the administration has tried to broker a compromise but to no avail. The GMO labeling issue continues to be divisive. The National Grange policy states that, until scientific studies indicate real health risks exist, the Grange should oppose the mandatory labeling of genetically modified products. The Grange does support the voluntary labeling of foods that are verified and certified free of GMO ingredients.
• Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP): Trade is traditionally a bipartisan issue with supporters and detractors on both sides of the aisle. President Obama and congressional leaders want the landmark, twelve-nation trade deal passed this year. But TPP is already embroiled in election year politics both in Congress and along the presidential primaries trail. Candidates Clinton, Sanders, Trump and Cruz oppose TPP. Congress will not act on TPP before elections which would leave it for the post-election lame duck session of Congress or punt it to the next president for 2017. The National Grange advocates for the creation of fair trade agreements that will be beneficial and flexible while protecting jobs and the American dream.
• Waters of the Unite States (WOTUS): Implementation of the WOTUS rule has been temporally suspended by court rulings to allow legal challenges by more than two dozen states to proceed. In December, 2015, Congress added language to the Omnibus spending bill that no FY’16 funds shall be used to implement WOTUS, effectively holding the rule at bay until October, 2016. In January, 2016, Congress passed a resolution (House 255-166, Senate 53-44) to redefine jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act that would kill the WOTUS rule; the President vetoed the resolution. The Senate fell eight votes short of overriding the veto. WOTUS will continue to be a hot topic in Congress.

Regulatory Issues to Watch in 2016

• WOTUS: Becoming known as the mother of all regulatory issues, the Waters of the United States rule is the top priority of most farm, ranch and landowner groups. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati has stayed implementation nationwide and will decide whether challenge to the rule should be litigated in the appeals court or district courts. Vast areas of agricultural land, idle lands and forest lands appear to be subject additional regulation if the rule is allowed to stand. EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers are not backing down and have said they look forward to vigorously defending the merits of WOTUS. As litigation moves forward this year, stay tuned for news from the court. The National Grange opposes any mandate that suggests all watersheds are to meet the same water quality standard and finds no basis for the federal government extending its WOTUS regulatory arm across all waters at every location in the country.

• Clean Power Plan: The most sweeping anti-coal move in history would impose carbon dioxide emissions limits for the first time on existing power plants. Known as the Clean Power Plan, the rule is designed to cut carbon pollution 32 percent over 2005 levels by 2030 even though EPA acknowledges harmful air pollution has been reduced by 70 percent since 1970. It is designed to accelerate the shift away from coal as the chief source of electricity generation toward natural gas, wind and solar power. A large number of older facilities would be forced to close thus greatly reducing electric generation capacity for the immediate future until alternative, cost effective generation facilities become available. The Supreme Court has ordered a halt to enforcement of the Clean Power Rule until utilities, miners and more than two dozen state legal challenges plus 30 additional suits are resolved. The D.C. Circuit Court is slated to review the merits of the many lawsuits challenging the plan on June 2. The National Grange policy supports all forms of viable energy development including traditional fossil fuels, wind, solar, hydroelectric and biofuels that deliver power to citizens as cheaply as possible in a reliable manner.
• Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA): This law was signed I 2011 but the regulations are still trickling in. The latest one published is the final Product Safety Rule which requires water used to grow produce or water that might come into contact with produce be tested for microbial contamination.
• Unmanned Aerial Aircraft (Drones): Drones are a boon for precision agriculture, allowing producers to monitor crop health and areas of fields that need more or less inputs such as nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus and trace minerals. Drones are becoming options to replace horses, ATVs and pickups for surveillance of wildlife, cattle herds, fences, trespass and boundaries. As drone use expands, air space safety becomes a priority. Support is growing for technology that will make drones detectable by ag aviators, requirements that drones be painted colors that make them readily distinguishable from their background and certification for drone operators. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is expected to propose a set of regulations later this year. Because of privacy and air safety concerns, the National Grange will play a major role as policy is created to regulate the use of drones in agriculture.

Farm Policy Recommendations for Presidential Candidates

The nonpartisan agricultural think tank Agree has some policy recommendations for the country’s presidential candidates. Agree co-chair and former Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman said these recommendations are needed to help farmers and ranchers overcome challenges with market volatility, drought, floods, disease, food safety and a reliable labor supply. The next president should:

• Strongly support research and innovation for food and agriculture
• Ensure a stable workforce through immigration reform
• Empower the next generation of entrants into agriculture
• Strengthen risk management policies and practices
• Bolster conservation and working landscapes
• Reduce healthcare risks through food and nutrition
• Respond to changing consumer demands through local food
• Address global hunger and malnutrition through international development

Struggles Ahead for Rural Areas

The USDA has released its 2015 “Rural America at a Glance” annual report. According to the report, many rural areas continue to experience population loss, higher poverty rates and lower educational attainment. Some of the highlights are:

• Rural employment grew one percent from 2014; urban employment rose two percent
• The proportion of rural adults with four-year degrees is thirteen percent lower than urban areas
• Population declined in two out of three rural counties
• Rural poverty remains high. Economic recovery after the 2008 recession has been stagnant for most rural residents

More About Food

Food is a necessity of life we Americans take for granted. Food is plentiful, nutritious, convenient and cheap here compared to most of the world. We have a wide variety of foods, preparation styles and ingredient choices. Food choices can be deemed healthy, unhealthy or a combination. Here are some updates concerning our food.

• Dietary Guidelines: The 2015 edition of Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the latest edition of federal dietary advice, was released in January. Reaction from most quarters has been largely positive. It recommends filling half your plate with fruits and vegetables then the other half with whole grains and protein like lean meat, while topping it all off with low or non-fat dairy products.
• Natural Foods: According to Consumer Reports, 62% of U.S. shoppers regularly bought foods with “natural” label and 42% mistakenly believe the presence of the word “natural” on a food means it’s been verified, checked or certified in some way. In reality, there are no federal requirements or guidelines for food to be labeled as “natural” as there are for organic and other certified food labels. The FDA does not restrict the use of “natural” on a food label so consumers may have been trusting in a label that means nothing at all. FDA has announced it is accepting comments for a more defined standard of what can be labeled “natural”. The Consumers Union will soon release its own recommendations for labeling rules.
• A Menu for 2050: Feeding the world’s growing population is a front-of-mind topic around the world. Science, technology and ingenuity will certainly enhance agriculture producers’ abilities to meet that challenge. Here are a few possible foods of the future which may help feed the masses, 1) Functional foods optimized to meet the nutritional profiles of children, the elderly, women and men, 2) Insects efficiently convert feedstocks to protein and there are 1,900 edible insect species on earth, 3) Algae could be the superfood of the future, offering more vitamins, minerals, protein and iron than fruits or vegetables; it’s cheap to produce and grows abundantly, 4) Lab grown in-vitro meat is a reality but more research is needed to make it textured, tastier and cheaper.