Max Baucus: “this amendment will help farmers who have experienced very deep, strong disasters due to weather conditions. It provides…”

“this amendment will help farmers who have experienced very deep, strong disasters due to weather conditions. It provides desperately needed disaster assistance for America's farmers and ranchers. I begin by thanking Senators Enzi, Reid, Burns, Landrieu, Dorgan, Johnson, Conrad, Carnahan, Dayton, Stabenow, and Lincoln for cosponsoring this. I also thank the 57 Senators who voted in support of this measure when we tried to append it to the stimulus package a couple weeks ago. We came very close to passing this amendment. Unfortunately, 10 of our colleagues were not present for the vote, and given the strong showing of bipartisan support and the likelihood that I think more than 60 Senators support this measure, it is vital that we try again with more Senators present. The amendment extends to the 2001 crop the same agricultural disaster programs that have proven crucial to American farmers in recent years. What could be more obvious and commonsense than to extend to the 2001 crop the same programs that have proven crucial to American farmers in recent years? The amendment provides $1.8 billion for crop disaster program and covers quality loss due to army worms. It provides $500 million to the livestock assistance program, with $12 million directed to the Native American livestock feed program. It also addresses the concerns of our apple producers and provides $100 million toward their market loss assistance program.”