Washington, D.C. -— U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge criticized President Bush for his veto this past Wednesday of The Food, Conservation and Energy Act, a new five-year Farm Bill that passed the House and the Senate with overwhelming bipartisan support last week.
Etheridge is the Chairman of the Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management of the House Agriculture Committee, which wrote a large portion of the bill.
“I am very disappointed that the President would veto a bill that would help families struggling to pay for groceries, invest in rural America’s economic development, strengthen our energy independence and help farmers to provide an affordable and abundant food supply,” said Etheridge. “The President seems to be all hat and no cattle.
“I will do everything in my power to convince my colleagues to vote to override this misguided veto. By vetoing the Farm Bill the President is standing against rural America and families in need,” said Etheridge.
The bill sets agricultural policy for the next five years. Two-thirds of the funds in the bill will support nutrition initiatives such as food stamps and food banks at a time when grocery costs are increasing. The bill includes an additional $10.36 billion for nutrition programs, increases funding for food banks by $1.2 billion and provides an increase of $1 billion for the USDA snack program, which provides healthy foods for children in after-school programs.
The bill keeps intact the basic farm safety net, while making needed reforms. A new energy provision would invest in production of and research into renewable energy sources. Also for the first time, the bill provides funds for specialty crops like fruits and vegetables, a growing agriculture sector in North Carolina.
Later in the day on Wednesday Etheridge lauded a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives to override Bush’s veto of The Food, Conservation and Energy Act. The House voted 316 – 108 to override the President’s veto.
“It is critical that we have a stable farm policy in this nation, not just for farmers, but for every person in this country who just plain needs to eat. I am pleased that my colleagues in the House have joined me in voting to override this misguided Presidential veto,” said Etheridge.
The Senate is expected to vote to override the veto as well, which would mean the bill would become law without the President’s signature. If the Senate votes to override, it will be only the second time that Congress has voted to override a veto by Bush.
Highlights of the Food, Conservation and Energy Act
Ensuring Food Security
· Nutrition programs increased by $10.361 billion with benefit increases indexed to the cost of living
· Vital assistance to food banks increased by $1.25 billion
· New funding boosts organic agriculture, fruit and vegetable programs, and local food networks
· Country-of-origin labeling for meat and produce made mandatory
Promoting Homegrown Renewable Energy
· Provides $1.1 billion to fund programs that will help the renewable energy industry invest in new technologies that use a variety of sources beyond feed grains.
· Corn ethanol tax credit reduced and redirected to incentives for cellulosic ethanol
· Creates a loan guarantee program and a program to encourage and develop production of dedicated energy crops
· Bioenergy research increased and renewable energy programs expanded
Reforming Farm Programs
· Farm program safety net extended and modernized, with an updated adjusted gross income means test for commodity programs
· Farm and conservation program transparency increased, with direct attribution of payments and the ending of practices that result in multiple payment eligibility
· Budgeted standing disaster assistance program for crops stricken by catastrophic natural disasters such as drought and flood
Protecting the Environment
· Conservation spending increased by $7.9 billion
· Doubles funding for the Farm Protection Program to protect agricultural lands from urban and suburban development pressure
· Increases funding for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and Conservation Stewardship Program to enhance and protect our natural resources
· Continues funding for Grassland Reserve and Wetlands Reserve programs
· Creates an Open Fields Program to encourage public access to private land for hunting and fishing as well as a Chesapeake Bay program to help restore and protect the Bay watershed
Strengthening International Food Aid
· Provides $60 million to purchase food overseas to feed people in need, in addition to the existing Food for Peace international aid program, along with an evaluation of this change and its effect on U.S. response times
· Reauthorizes the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program for infant, child, and school nutrition programs in underdeveloped countries and provides an infusion of $84 million in additional funding