María Elvira Salazar: “On disaster assistance and the importance of us creating a permanent disaster assistance fund, first, we are not…”

“On disaster assistance and the importance of us creating a permanent disaster assistance fund, first, we are not delivering disaster assistance efficiently to date. Secondly, we should not be relying on emergency spending to provide disaster assistance. We need to put these expenditures back on the books. Congress has passed 23-- 23--ad hoc disaster assistance bills since 1988. That is 23 since 1988. Although I am supportive of this emergency assistance and have helped push this emergency disaster assistance forward in the last 2 rac{1}{2} years, I believe we need to create a system for disaster aid that will respond more efficiently and promptly to the needs of our ranchers and farmers. What we have done on this bill--thanks to the leadership of Chairman Baucus and Ranking Member Grassley on the Finance Committee--is to create a permanent trust fund for disaster assistance. This will allow us to maintain discipline and high standards for determining when to pay out disaster funds, and it will allow producers to get help more quickly. It is a sensible and fiscally responsible solution. The American farmer has always been an engine for prosperity and opportunity in America. Through revolution, western settlement, depression, and world wars, the men and women who work our lands have always been there to lead us through the next great challenge that faces our country.”