Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of a bipartisan, straightforward amendment that I introduced with my colleague, Congressman Radel of Florida, that will help maximize the efficiency of taxpayer dollars used in the Federal crop insurance program. Periodically, the USDA, through the Risk Management Agency, renegotiates its agreement with private crop insurers for the delivery and administration of Federal crop insurance. These negotiations, known as Standard Reinsurance Agreements, do not affect the premium subsidies paid to farmers and instead focus on the percent of gains or losses assumed by taxpayers and the level of crop insurance administrative and operating costs paid by the Federal Government. {time} 2240 The most recent negotiation was finalized in 2010 and yielded $6 billion in savings. Of these savings, $4 billion was used to reduce the Federal deficit, and the remaining $2 billion was put back into farm programs to supplement conservation efforts and improve certain products provided through the Federal crop insurance program. Our amendment simply maintains current law by striking a provision in the bill requiring that any savings from future Standard Reinsurance Agreements be put back into the Federal crop insurance program. This amendment continues to respect the importance of a robust farm safety net while maintaining USDA's tools to improve Federal crop insurance, reduce the deficit, and strengthen conservation programs within the farm bill.…”