{"id":8194,"date":"2017-07-26T13:00:09","date_gmt":"2017-07-26T21:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/calcanstaging.kinsta.cloud\/?p=8194"},"modified":"2017-07-26T13:00:09","modified_gmt":"2017-07-26T21:00:09","slug":"senate-appropriators-prioritize-sustainable-agriculture-and-rural-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/calclimateag.org\/es\/senate-appropriators-prioritize-sustainable-agriculture-and-rural-development\/","title":{"rendered":"Senate Appropriators Prioritize Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development"},"content":{"rendered":"

The following is a blog post from the\u00a0National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition<\/a>\u00a0(NSAC), of which CalCAN is a member. CalCAN previously shared NSAC’s blog posts in March<\/a> y May<\/a> about the Trump Administration’s proposed draconian budget cuts to agriculture, rural development, and conservation programs. We are pleased to share this positive news from the Senate Appropriations Committee.<\/em><\/p>\n

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The Senate Appropriations Committee considers the fiscal year 2018 Agriculture appropriations bill. Photo credit: Zachary Silver\/The Hagstrom Report.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Following closely on the heels of the\u00a0House Agriculture Appropriation Subcommittee\u2019s funding bill<\/a>, which was approved by the full House Appropriations Committee last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee has advanced its\u00a0agriculture appropriations funding measure<\/a>\u00a0for fiscal year (FY) 2018. The Senate bill moved quickly through the Subcommittee and full Committee approval process, with just two days from Subcommittee to full Committee passage. This appropriations bill funds the major programs and functions of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).<\/p>\n

Similar to the bill passed by the House Appropriations Committee, the Senate bill soundly rejects much of the\u00a0President\u2019s budget proposal<\/a>, which would have made massive and devastating cuts to a host of vital food and farm programs.<\/p>\n

The overall discretionary spending limit that was established for the Senate Subcommittee ($20.525 billion), while $352 million bellow the FY2017 Omnibus spending level, was $525 million higher than the spending limit set for the House Subcommittee ($20 billion). As a result, the Senate Subcommittee was able to include significant funding increases for a number of key programs, including: the\u00a0Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program<\/a>,\u00a0Outreach and Technical Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged and Veteran Farmers and Ranchers Program (2501)<\/a>,\u00a0Food Safety Outreach Program (FSOP)<\/a>, Conservation Technical Assistance (CTA), and\u00a0Organic Transitions (ORG) research program<\/a>. The Committee also rejected the President\u2019s proposed cuts to\u00a0Farm Service Agency (FSA) loan programs<\/a>\u00a0as well as the\u00a0Value Added Producer Grants Program (VAPG)<\/a>\u00a0and other rural business programs; these programs were provided with level funding.<\/p>\n

In addition to increasing funding to build upon successful programs, the Senate bill rejects the Administration\u2019s decision earlier this year to eliminate USDA\u2019s Rural Development Mission Area and Undersecretary for Rural Development. By retaining funding for the position and modifying statute to explicitly direct the Secretary to appoint an Undersecretary for Rural Development, Senate appropriators have taken a stand for farmers, rural America, and food producing communities. The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) wishes to thank Subcommittee Chairman John Hoeven (R-ND), Appropriations Committee Chairman Thad Cochran (R-MS), Senator Jon Tester (D-MT), Ranking Member Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) for their leadership in fighting for a strong Rural Development Mission Area and for the needs of rural communities nationwide.<\/p>\n

Below, we outline key wins and important provisions in the Senate\u2019s bill for sustainable agriculture. NSAC will continue to advocate to protect these important programs as the FY 2018 appropriations process moves forward.<\/p>\n

Stay tuned for our updated appropriations chart, which\u00a0will be posted here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Manager\u2019s Amendment<\/strong><\/p>\n

During the legislating process, the \u201cmanager\u201d of a bill, in this case Subcommittee Chairman Hoeven, has the option to make changes to a bill after introduction but ahead of consideration of that bill. Those changes are typically packaged into what is known as a \u201cmanager\u2019s amendment.\u201d Two important highlights were included in the Manager\u2019s Amendment, which was approved by voice vote.<\/p>\n

The first was the restoration of the position of Undersecretary for USDA\u2019s Rural Development Mission Area. The Senate bill now provides funding for the position of Undersecretary, and includes language in the bill instructing the Secretary of Agriculture to nominate someone for the position. This is a different approach than the one taken by the House Appropriations Committee, which included no funding for the Undersecretary position. Read more about the\u00a0the fight for Rural Development in our previous post.<\/a>\u00a0This directive from the Senate Appropriations Committee is the first step in the process of reinstating the position of Rural Development Undersecretary. Over the next several months, the House and Senate will need to negotiate their bills and settle on final language. Yet there is no reason that Secretary Perdue cannot move immediately to nominate an Undersecretary to be considered by the Senate for confirmation. We urge USDA to do just that, and will continue to work with Congress to include the Senate language in final appropriations legislation.<\/p>\n

The second win included in the Manager\u2019s Amendment was an increase in funding ($3 million) for the 2501 program. The program offers competitive grants to organizations and universities that provide technical assistance to underserved populations who are interested in accessing USDA resources. The program currently has $10 million in mandatory farm bill funding, which is not enough to meet the high demand for its services. The increased funding included in the Senate bill would provide much-needed assistance to farmers of color and military veteran farmers nationwide.\u00a0NSAC thanks Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) for championing this crucial funding increase.<\/p>\n

The Devil in the Details<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although we generally feel the Senate bill is a strong one that supports the priorities of the sustainable agriculture community, there are also a few cuts and concerning actions that should be highlighted. Below we summarize the details of the bill by NSAC priority-issue area:<\/p>\n