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CSP's author is frustrated Harkin 'USDA is missing the boat' Tuesday, June 1, 2004
Agri News staff writer
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Tom Harkin is frustrated at what happened to the Conservation Security Program in the past two years during a May 11 Senate Agriculture Committee hearing.
"Put simply, USDA is missing the boat when it comes to delivering the Conservation Security Program that farmers and ranchers were promised,'' said Harkin, who headed the Senate Agriculture Committee when the farm bill was passed. "President Bush and Secretary Veneman both praised the bold conservation measures included in the farm bill, yet they are allowing the most promising initiative to be strangled in the crib.''
Harkin also attacked USDA's efforts to limit CSP by watersheds.
"CSP was designed to be open to all producers willing to meet its conservation requirements,'' said Harkin, architect of the program. "The proposed rules will limit CSP enrollment in any year to only some watersheds and thus exclude the vast majority of producers from even applying.''
And base payments, he said, are too low to encourage producers to participate in the program.
"I know thousands of producers in Iowa alone that are terribly disappointed by the direction USDA is taking CSP,'' Harkin said. "CSP was designed to reward good stewards and encourage more producers to practice greater conservation measures''
Bruce Knight, head of the Natural Resources Conservation Service, said the watershed approach is misunderstood. He said that the dollars Congress has made available won't even begin to meet the immediate demand.
Given the $41 million available for this fiscal year and unknown amounts for 2005 and beyond, USDA has proposed a program that focuses CSP's activities and benefits in high-priority regions that meet the environmental and philosophical goals of the program.
The final rule, Knight said, should be published this summer with sign-up occurring soon after that.
Farmers who attended the hearing expressed confusion and frustration with the USDA's handling of CSP.
Attendees included organic dairy farmer Francis Thicke from Fairfield, Iowa, Minnesota Farm Bureau President Al Christopherson and senior policy analyst at the Minnesota Project Lonnie Kemp.
Kemp said that while the Bush administration cites limited funding of $41 million for the current fiscal year which runs through September, they ignore the fact that Congress removed the budget cap for next fiscal year. In October the program returns to its full funding status on par with commodity subsidies.
"The USDA announcement clearly states that the restrictions are intended to be permanent and will be included in the final rule,'' Kemp said. |
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