Page 101 - Spring2018

Legislative Updates

YOUR ACTIVISM WORKS!
By Judith McGeary, Esq.

Thank you to everyone who has taken ac- try programs in the last Farm Bill, based on the
tion on the WAPF alerts about the PRIME Act! expectation that the export markets would keep
This bill would help remove one of the biggest prices high. With the export markets proving to
barriers to local meat production, namely the be an exercise in international price-shopping
lack of local meat processors that small farmers that have pushed farmers’ prices below their cost
can use to process meat to sell at farmers mar- to produce these goods, conventional dairy and
kets and local outlets (more details in sidebar). cotton farmers have been desperate to have the
The PRIME Act is now up to 22 co-sponsors programs restored.
—including Representative Colin Peterson, the But restoring these programs requires sig-
ranking member (most senior Democrat) on the nificant funds, and one of the delays in holding
House Agriculture Committee. a hearing on the Farm Bill has been that the
Representative Peterson signed on to the money required for this change would normally
bill after hearing from WAPF members in his be taken out of other existing programs. But in
district. The WAPF members didn’t sign an on- February, Congress provided for the dairy and
line petition or send a form email. Instead, they cotton programs within the omnibus budget—
took a few minutes to call and send personal effectively increasing the total amount of money
emails. Just a handful of personal contacts like for farm programs within the Farm Bill. That
that can be enough to get a legislator’s attention unusual procedural move cleared the way for the
and support, as they did here. Committee to move forward on the Farm Bill
The best chance for the PRIME Act to pass without having to make the difficult choice of
is as an amendment to the Farm Bill, which we what to cut to make room for dairy and cotton Judith McGeary
also discussed in the last issue of Wise Tradi- commodity programs. is the Austin, Texas,
tions. There is a realistic chance of this happen- All of these commodity programs are chapter leader, an
ing, with a bipartisan list of co-sponsors that deeply flawed and a significant part of our attorney and
includes not only Rep. Peterson but also Rep. dysfunctional agriculture and food system. small farmer, and the
executive director of
King (R-IA), another member of the House Understandably, some WAPF members have the Farm and Ranch
Agriculture Committee. expressed concern about linking the PRIME Freedom Alliance.
So what is happening with the Farm Bill? Act to the Farm Bill. But we face two realities She has a B.S. in
The public debates on it have repeatedly been at this time: (1) with or without our support, the biology from
Stanford University
delayed, while work has gone on behind the Farm Bill will pass without major changes to its and a J.D. from the
scenes. At the time this article goes to print, the fundamental provisions, and (2) the PRIME Act University of Texas
best information on when the House Agriculture is highly unlikely to pass except as an amend- at Austin. She and
Committee will hold its “mark-up”—committee ment to the Farm Bill. We can advocate for the her husband
run a small
discussion—on the bill is the very last week of PRIME Act to be added to the Farm Bill without grass-based farm
March or first week of April. The Senate Agri- expressing support for the Farm Bill as a whole with sheep, cattle,
culture Committee’s timing is entirely unclear. —and, in doing so, help build more strength for horses, and poultry.
The Committee’s version of the Farm Bill is a sustainable, localized food system. For more
information, go to
expected to look a lot like the last Farm Bill. One Even if you have called or written before, farmandranch
key difference will be for the dairy and cotton now is an important time to contact your federal freedom.org or
industries, which were taken out of large indus- legislators and ask them to support the PRIME call (254) 697-2661.

SPRING 2018 Wise Traditions 99