Sanford Bishop: “Mr. Chairman, this Congress can make historic progress in making agricultural programs that enable farm producers to…”

“Mr. Chairman, this Congress can make historic progress in making agricultural programs that enable farm producers to survive in today's markets and to continue providing the highest quality commodities at the lowest cost to consumers. The House has already passed a bill providing immediate farm relief, and the Committee on Agriculture has moved aggressively to draft a new multiyear farm bill to secure greater long-term stability. Today, we are considering a bill for the next fiscal year that provides $260 million more than the President's budget; more for research, including some $7 million more in Georgia; more for crop insurance; more in rural electric and communications loans; more for child nutrition and WIC programs; and sets aside more than $79 billion over 10 years in new emergency aid, including $7.4 billion for next year. While I support a higher overall agriculture budget, it is time to move the process forward and resolve any differences in House and Senate negotiations. Our goal is to save our agricultural system at a time of crisis, and today we can take another step in that direction.”