News Releases for June 2007
June 11, 2007
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Hoeven Meets With Johanns On Farm Bill, Urges Timely Action On Disaster Aid, Briefs Secretary On Flooding
BISMARCK, N.D. – Gov. John Hoeven today met with U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns at the Western Governors Association meeting in Deadwood, S.D., where he emphasized three main points for the Secretary: timely disaster aid payments; renewal of the Farm Bill; and the status of flooding in southeastern North Dakota.
Hoeven stressed the need to expedite the delivery of agriculture disaster assistance recently passed by Congress, which is expected to deliver $150 million to North Dakota farmers and ranchers who suffered losses in 2005 or 2006, or through March of 2007. Because of the need to draft rules, the USDA has indicated that it may take up to five months to deliver the funds Congress authorized. Hoeven urged Johanns to accelerate the delivery of the funding.
“With the increased costs of fuel and other expenses our producers face, USDA needs to do everything they can to provide assistance as soon as possible,” Hoeven said. “I asked Secretary Johanns to do all he can to expedite the rulemaking process and get the aid delivered to our farmers and ranchers.”
Hoeven also stressed the importance of the new Farm Bill to North Dakota. The Governor urged the Secretary to work with producers and Congress to incorporate into the bill better risk management provisions, such as improved crop insurance or a disaster aid title.
Hoeven said enhanced risk management provisions could be a crop insurance option designed to fill the gap between traditional coverage levels and historical yields. It could also take the form of a permanent disaster title to support producers who have had losses due to drought, flooding, disease, or some other natural setback.
The Governor told Johanns that the next Farm Bill needs to be based on the same principles as the current one. It should be a long-term bill that contains a counter-cyclical safety net that is fair to all crops. The bill should have strong programs for renewable energy, value-added projects and conservation.
Hoeven also apprised Johanns of the current flooding situation, particularly in southeastern North Dakota. Hoeven asked that the USDA begin doing its assessment of its options for helping producers who may have inundated or unplanted crops, or limited access to forage because of flooded acres. Hoeven last week asked the USDA Farm Service Agency state office to evaluate options for opening Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) acres to haying in areas where typical hay land is now under water.
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