Its been a while since I posted a Farm Bill update since most of you are already bombarded with information in the more traditional press but I thought that it would be a good time just to give a short assessment of where the bills stand at this point.
The Senate voted to limit debate and invoke cloture on S 954 the Farm Bill. This means that there will be a short floor debate and then a vote on Monday June 10th. Only four of the 12 Senators from the region voted against cloture. Passage of cloture ensures that only a few of the nearly 250 amendments that have been proposed will actually see any debate and it is unlikely that any of those amendments will be controversial or potentially damaging to STAX.
The House bill looks like it will move the next week. The week of June 17th seems to be the timeframe for the House to bring their version of the Farm Bill HR 1947 to the floor. There are sure to be many amendments proposed to this bill and we will be working to get the word out to stop any that may take anything away from STAX.
The goal for Congress is to get this bill passed as soon as possible and get it behind them. Regardless of how fast it passes STAX may not be fully implemented for the 2014 season but assurances from RMA are that as the farm bill becomes more heavily dependent on crop insurance, they will work hard to get all provisions implemented as soon as possible.
Please don’t hesitate to call Dave in our office if you have questions.
DSF