Saxby Chambliss: “this amendment would require those who receive crop insurance protection from the Federal Government to now follow…”

“this amendment would require those who receive crop insurance protection from the Federal Government to now follow conservation compliance laws. Conservation compliance was enacted as part of the 1985 farm bill and has contributed almost singlehandedly to almost three decades of progress in limiting erosion, cleaning up waterways, and protecting wetlands. For those of us who love to fish and hunt, that has been of critical importance. No other program has done more for protecting our farmland and topsoil than conservation compliance. In 1996 Congress exempted crop insurance from the conservation requirement. Back then, the reason for doing so was to increase participation in the Crop Insurance Program. And that is exactly what we have seen. We have seen premium subsidies increase by 500 percent. The farm bill we are debating now will incentivize farmers to move from title I programs to crop insurance, and as a result soil and wetland conservation will not be a policy priority. And it should be. This shift will likely adversely impact soil and conservation without this amendment. If crop insurance is going to be the preferred safety net for farmers, then we also need to make sure the program does not incentivize farmers to eliminate the gains we have made in the last 25 years. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time has expired.”