Tell Speaker Pelosi:
Protect Conservation Funding in the Farm Bill!
The deadline for completing a final Farm Bill is less than two weeks away, and Farm Bill conferees are trying to reconcile differing House and Senate bills passed last year. In the final stretch, conferees are deciding which programs get funded and at what levels. Right now, Conservation Programs are being threatened with a $1 billion cut. If this cut goes through, the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), which pays farmers for implementing environmentally sound farming practices (including organic practices) is one of the programs whose funding level could fall short of what is needed. Rather than cut funding, we need Speaker Pelosi to insist on an increase in funding for CSP by at least $2 billion in the new Farm Bill in order to help protect soil, water, air, and wildlife. (Scroll down for more info.)
Contact House Speaker Nancy Pelosi right away! Urge her to insist on at least $2 billion over the next 5 years for the Conservation Stewardship Program during Farm Bill negotiations!
Contact Info
The Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House
Phone: (202) 225-0100
Email: AmericanVoices@mail.house.gov
When you call, please ask to speak to the legislative aide that works on agriculture.
Please let Tracy Lerman, Policy Program Assistant, know that you’ve contacted your representative! Call (831) 426-6606 x 108 or email tracy@ofrf.org.
Background
Farm Bill Funding Negotiations
The deadline for completion of the 2007 Farm Bill is April 18th, and agriculture leaders are in the midst of negotiating a funding framework to determine which programs are being funded and how much money they are getting. A few weeks ago, they came up with a framework that provided about $5 billion for Conservation Programs. This funding level would have allowed for a $2 billion increase in funding for the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), which environmental and sustainable agriculture groups applauded. However, Senator Max Baucus (D-MT) and Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND) fiercely opposed the funding framework because it only provided $2.2 billion to their priority program, the permanent disaster relief program. Baucus and Conrad wield a lot of power in Farm Bill negotiations because Baucus chairs the Finance Committee, Conrad chairs the Budget Committee and sits on the Finance Committee, and both are Farm Bill Conferees.
Last week, a new, modified framework was being negotiated that increased funding for the permanent disaster relief program to $4.05 billion and cut funding to conservation programs from $5 billion to $4 billion. If this $1 billion cut is included in the final Farm Bill, CSP could lose funding.
For more information on the 2007 Farm Bill, read our Farm Bill update.
Conservation Stewardship Program
The Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) is a nationwide comprehensive stewardship incentive program that provides financial assistance to farmers for solving or avoiding natural resource and environmental problems through the adoption of sustainable practices and systems. The 2007 Farm Bill includes language that integrates organic farming practices into CSP by giving organic growers enhanced consideration in the application and ranking process and streamlines the application process. These new provisions will allow easier access for organic farmers applying to CSP and recognizes the environmental benefits that organic farming systems provide. Inclusion of this new language is a boon for organic farming, but its benefits will only be realized if CSP funding overall is increased by at least $2 billion.
For more information, read the Sustainable Agriculture Coalition’s CSP action alert.
Join OFRF's Organic Farmers Action Network by clicking on the link at: www.ofrf.org
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