Farm Bill Update

Final Farm Bill Falls Short of a Faithful Farm Bill

by Leslie Woods

On February 7, President Obama signed into law the newest Farm Bill. Unfortunately, the best I can say about the overall bill is that it could have been worse.  The PC(USA) has a long history of supporting a Farm Bill that connects hungry people to what should be a sustainable food system. Last year, both the PC(USA) Big Tent and Ecumenical Advocacy Days focused on Food Justice. But this bill falls short of the justice we seek.

The Bad News: the bill cuts $8 billion from SNAP, formerly the Food Stamp Program. In this economic climate, it is unconscionable that we are cutting nutrition assistance to some of the most vulnerable people in the country. Due to these cuts, some 850,000 households will lose an average of $90 per month.  These cuts are unacceptable. Further, the Farm Bill fails to make reforms to Farm programs that benefit corporate Ag, like commodity and crop insurance subsidies.

The Good News: the bill invests over $1.2 billion in the innovative programs for beginning farmers, local food, organic agriculture, rural development, and specialty crops that were stranded when the Farm Bill expired in 2012.  The bill also reconnects crop insurance subsidies to basic conservation requirements. Furthermore, under this new law, U.S. international humanitarian food aid becomes much more efficient and culturally appropriate. These were all key requests of the faith community.

A Reason to be Relieved: I am not writing today about a $40 billion cut to SNAP and the four million people who would be about to lose their benefits, as I would if the House-passed Farm Bill had become law. Indeed, when thousands of Presbyterians responded to frantic action alerts about that $40 billion cut in September 2013, I could not have imagined that the final, comparable damage would be so small. 

So, the new Farm Bill is a mixed bag. The SNAP cuts are appalling, but they are not nearly as bad as they could be – or even than we thought they would be only a few months ago. The farm programs are investing in some new and innovative ideas in agriculture, even while they fall short of real reform of the system.  In all, this is not a good bill, nor is it something the PC(USA) can support, but it does do some good things.  

Farm Bill Update from NSAC

Last week, we posted an update on the Farm Bill that focused largely on the Nutrition section of the bill. On Friday, the National Sustainable Agriculture blog had a helpful piece on of our other concerns in Farm Bill negotiations.  Read it all here or see the Farm Bill excerpts below:

Farm Bill and Budget Deal Moving Forward

December 13th, 2013

Farm Bill

Behind closed door action on the farm bill this week did not yield the expected announcement of an agreed upon framework, but did seem to push closer toward a final package.  There has been a very noticeable uptick in discussions and decision making on numerous issues that had, in earlier negotiations, been left open.  And by most accounts, budget estimates for the emerging commodity title of the farm bill have just been completed that suggest they are close to their overall spending and deficit reduction goals for the commodity subsidy portion of the farm bill.

Negotiations are expected to continue next week, even with the House having left for the holidays, with the goal of having everything ready for a formal meeting of the conference committee on January 8 or 9.  At that time, the conferees will vote an any issues that have not been settled behind closed doors, and then vote to adopt the final conference report.  At this point in time, that is expected to be a one-and-done meeting of the conferees.

To the best of our knowledge, some major issues remain open and under active debate.  Those include:

• commodity program payment limit reform (including closing the loopholes that allow farms to collect unlimited subsidies) that is included in both bills, yet still faces backroom opposition by anti-reform forces;
• nationwide sodsaver protection (crop insurance reform to reduce subsidized destruction of grasslands) included in the Senate bill;
• an assault on fair market competition in the livestock sector that would eliminate most of USDA’s authority to maintain a fair and competitive market and to protect the rights of farmers and ranchers, an anti-farmer provision included in the House bill;
• reversing consumer-right-to-know country of origin labeling for meat, also included in the House bill; and
• the King amendment, another House provision, that would curtail the rights of states to regulate food, agriculture, and natural resources.

Some of those, if still unresolved after next week, could possibly go to a public vote when the conferees meet in January.  We expect some of these to be worked out next week, eliminating the need for specific votes.  Other unresolved issues might also be added to the list of issues requiring votes.

It appears that the big issues that have taken up much of the time in the so-called gang of four negotiations between the chairs and ranking members of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees are close to finished.  That includes the widely reported, though still not officially confirmed, cut to the SNAP or food stamp program of $8-9 billion over the next 10 years.  All or nearly all of the reduction is reportedly coming from forcing states to give low-income families receiving heating assistance more money before they can use that heating benefit as a deduction to qualify for a higher SNAP benefit.  The food stamp title of the bill is also expected to include some job training pilot projects in lieu of the House-passed work requirement.

It also includes the new commodity program that would give grain and oilseed producers a choice between revenue protection payments or counter-cyclical payments.  Both will be based on an updated version of historic “base” acres and will not be based on actual planted acres in the future.

Assuming a final bill gets mostly wrapped up next week and is then presented to the conferees on January 8 or 9, and assuming that after voting on the remaining open issues, a majority of the conferees support the final bill, it will then presumably be scheduled for floor action in the House and Senate later in January, about the same time, perhaps, as the final omnibus appropriations bill is also headed for floor action.

The latter must be passed by January 15 in order to avert a second government shutdown.  The farm bill, on the other hand, does not have such a hard deadline, but will have the threat of antiquated permanent commodity program law kicking in and causing market mayhem.  The House in fact this week passed a one-month extension of the old farm bill in order to defend themselves against charges of allowing those old farm programs to kick in.  The Senate, wisely, is not taking up the extension, choosing instead to focus on getting the new farm bill finished and passed.  A farm bill extension back on October 1, when the old farm bill expired, would have been a positive thing.  But at this point in time, it is too late to be helpful, and could seriously harm the momentum that is building to get the new farm bill finished.

The vote on a final farm bill could turn out to be a close vote, and for sure will require substantial Democratic votes to pass.  Aware of that reality, and upset that the budget deal did not include an extension of unemployment compensation benefits, some Democratic leaders are pushing to use a portion of the savings to be generated by the farm bill to offset additional unemployment benefits.  Benefits otherwise expire at the end of this year for many of the long-term unemployed.  Whether that play moves forward or not will depend in part on how many Republican votes can be rallied to support passage of the final farm bill.

It will be a busy week next week, with a Senate vote on the budget deal, with appropriators getting to work on the final spending bills for this year as soon as the Senate passes the budget, and with intense work on the details of all the titles of the farm bill.  Then everyone will depart from the Hill, go home and drink lots of eggnog, and come back for what is shaping up to be a momentous January.

Farm Bill Deadline Approaches

As the year draws to a close, Congress has many must-pass items left on its plate.  Perhaps most pressing are the budget and the Farm Bill.  The House is scheduled to adjourn for the year next Friday, Dec. 13, but the Senate does not even return from Thanksgiving recess until next Monday, Dec. 6.  This leaves one week for them to wrap up the first session of the 113^th Congress. 

Of course, that it not to say that conversations are not ongoing.  Indeed, bicameral conference committees on both issues are in the midst of delicate and intense negotiations.  Leaving aside the question of the budget for now, for after all, Congress does have a few weeks into the New Year to come to agreement before the next manufactured fiscal crisis, the focus of the faith community has been on the Farm Bill.

Our nation’s food and farm policies, as embodied in the Farm Bill, impact people and communities from rural America to big cities to developing countries. In the Farm bill are provisions that authorize SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly Food Stamps), international food aid, conservation programs, initiatives that support new and minority farmers and ranchers, rural development programs, sustainable energy research, farm subsidies, crop insurance, just to name the most famous.  In all, the Farm Bill is a mixed bag of policies, some of which promote a more just food system and some that trap us in a vicious cycle of subsidized commodities and under-nutrition.  Nevertheless, the Farm Bill is must-pass, if for no other reason than that it authorizes SNAP and promotes environmentally sustainable practices on working farmlands.  

Write to your Members of Congress to urge a just and comprehensive Farm Bill this year.

In the current budget climate, which incorrectly functions from an assumption of scarcity, the Farm Bill’s limited resources must be effectively targeted where need is greatest. And people are hungry -- the U.S. and around the world. Programs and policies that curb hunger and malnutrition, support vibrant agricultural economies in rural communities, and promote the sustainable use of natural resources must be prioritized.  At the same time, we should be shifting away from investment in programs that subsidize factory farms and promote major commodities as the most viable crops for food and fuel.

Earlier in the year, serious threats were made to the funding of SNAP and on Nov. 1st, SNAP benefits were cut as a 2009 funding increase ran out.  Far from there being room to cut SNAP, most SNAP beneficiaries find that their benefits run out by the third or fourth week of the month and turn to private charity to fill gap.  If anything, we need to invest more in Food Stamp benefits.  SNAP is designed as a counter-cyclical program that expands to meet needs when the economy is bad and people lose income and become eligible.  When the jobs outlook and economy improve, it contracts as participants cycle off the program. 

So, Congress must reauthorize the SNAP program without the proposed cuts.  There is simply no way to achieve significant cuts without affecting benefits and nutrition education programs.  Write today to your members of Congress.

During the week before Thanksgiving, hundreds of Presbyterians, including our leaders Stated Clerk Gradye Parsons, Moderator Neal Presa, and Executive Director Linda Valentine, are taking the Food Stamp/SNAP Challenge.  The Stated Clerk Gradye Parsons reflects on his trip to the grocery store in this article and Linda Valentine allowed the News Service to publish her journal from that week here.  Days after their SNAP Challenge concluded, they sent this letter to Congress.

With the PC(USA)’s long-held convictions about food justice and fair food and farm policy, our interests in the Farm Bill, while very concerned with the nutrition programs, are also much broader that.  In a joint statement with interfaith partners, the PC(USA) called on Congress to pass a Farm Bill that:

• Protects and strengthens programs that reduce hunger and improve nutrition in the United States.
• Promotes investments and policies that strengthen rural communities and combat rural poverty.
• Provides a fair and effective farmer safety net that allows farmers in the U.S. and around the world to earn economically sustainable livelihoods.
• Strengthens policies and programs that promote conservation and protect creation from environmental degradation.
• Protects the dignity, health, and safety, of those responsible for working the land.
• Promotes research related to alternative, clean, and renewable forms of energy that do not negatively impact food prices or the environment.
• Safeguards and improves international food aid in ways that encourage local food security and improve the nutritional quality of food aid.

Write to your Members of Congress here.

To read more about the PC(USA) Office of Public Witness’ advocacy around the Farm Bill and SNAP, visit our farm bill blog.

Senate Farm Bill Vote Imminent!

The full Senate is voting on the Farm Bill this week.  This is it!  Our once-in-five-years opportunity to improve this nation’s food and farm policy.  Write to your Senators today, urging them to support a Farm Bill that alleviates hunger and malnutrition, supports vibrant farms and rural communities, and protects God’s creation. 

See a summary of important, harmful amendments outlined in the sample letter to Congress below.*

Why the Farm Bill?

Our nation’s food and farm policies, as embodied in the farm bill, affect people from rural America to inner cities, from our local communities to less industrialized regions around the world. The farm bill is the single largest piece of federal policy impacting our food system. A good farm bill can strengthen nutrition programs like SNAP (formerly Food Stamps), help our struggling rural communities, support new and socially disadvantaged farmers, enhance global food aid to the world’s most impoverished, and encourage farming and ranching practices that protect God’s creation.

Action this Week:

This week, the U.S. Senate is voting on its version of the 2013 Farm Bill (S. 954), with votes on amendments already underway. Now is the time to support a fair Farm Bill, and related amendments, that will help alleviate hunger and malnutrition in the U.S. and around the world, support international development, promote growth in U.S. rural communities, and encourage stewardship of creation.

We need Congress to pass a Farm Bill this year.  The current authorization of the Farm Bill expired in 2012 and without reauthorization, many conservation and innovative, small farm programs will no longer exist, or be left with no funding. Farmers, who engage in an inherently risky business for the good of the rest of us, need the stability that a Farm Bill reauthorization brings.  Farming requires long-term planning and producers need to know what sort of support they can expect from the federal government.  In addition, the largest, most effective anti-hunger program in the nation, SNAP, is authorized through the Farm Bill.

The Senate farm bill is not perfect, but it is the best farm bill we are likely to see from this Congress, especially when compared to the severe cuts to nutrition and conservation programs contained in the House farm bill.  The Senate bill represents an important opportunity to provide stability for farmers, nutrition assistance to the economically vulnerable, food aid to those affected by disaster, development opportunities in rural communities, and land stewardship and conservation for the good of the land for the safety of drinking water. 

Write to your Senators here. 

In particular, tell the Senate to oppose harmful amendments that will codify discrimination in our flagship nutrition program.*

We urge the Senate to support a Farm Bill and amendments that prioritize:

• Domestic Hunger and Nutrition: With continued high unemployment and a struggling economy, Congress should support access to adequate and nutritious food for those in need and oppose attempts to weaken or restructure these programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP);
• International Food Security and Development: The Food for Peace program saves people's lives in times of dire emergencies and combats chronic hunger in poor communities around the world. Support reforms to Food for Peace that give aid workers on the ground more flexibility to employ interventions best suited to local conditions and replace monetization. The Administration's budget proposed major changes to food aid that would provide similar flexibility. Urge Congress to adopt such flexibilities in authorizing legislation that also protects funding for emergency assistance and food security development projects;
• Farm Subsidies: It is important to continue a reasonable amount of support for farmers, but we must focus that support on the small and moderate-sized, independent producers who most need a safety net. Given current high commodity prices and federal budget constraints, agricultural subsidies and direct payments should be reduced overall, and targeted to small and moderate-sized farms, especially minority owned-farms. Government resources should assist those who truly need assistance and support those who comply with environmentally sound and sustainable farming practices;
• Conservation and Stewardship: Support full funding for conservation initiatives that promote stewardship of the land and environmentally sound agriculture practices. These programs provide technical assistance and financial incentives for farmers and ranchers to adopt practices aimed at fostering healthy, productive, and non-eroding soils, clean air and water, energy savings and wildlife habitat;
• Rural Development: Rural communities and small towns are the backbone of the social and economic life of America. Effective policies and programs are needed to encourage rural development and promote the culture and well-being of these communities.

Send a Message today!

Tell your Senators to support amendments to strengthen a healthy food and farm policy, make sure that farm supports go to the farms and farmers who most need the aid, and to reject amendments that weaken nutrition, rural development, and conservation programs.  In particular, tell the Senate to oppose harmful amendments that will codify discrimination in our flagship nutrition program.*

For more information on the Senate Farm Bill process and for information and updates about various amendments, visit our blog at http://officeofpublicwitness.blogspot.com/search/label/farm%20bill.  Updates will be posted as debate continues.

* There are two discriminatory amendments of major concern:

1. Oppose Sessions Amdt #947

This amendment would require every citizen member of a SNAP household to produce an original birth certificate or passport to prove citizenship. Also, unless all members of a household provide these papers, the entire household would be disqualified from SNAP. Low-income documented immigrants already are required to provide detailed verification of their immigration status under current law, as are citizen children in immigrant households.  This amendment would delay or deny benefits to native-born U.S. citizens who don’t have a birth certificate or passport.

2. Oppose Vitter Amdt #1056

(Note: this amendment has already been agreed to by unanimous consent, but it’s not too late to make Senators go back and change their minds.)

This amendment Denies SNAP to ex-offenders. The amendment harshly punishes people who committed a single violent crime years or decades ago and fully paid their debt to society. They would be made ineligible for SNAP for life, and SNAP benefits for children or other family members would be cut. It would also impose serious barriers to individuals who are not ex-offenders. Every single individual on SNAP – including children, older adults, and people with disabilities – would have to provide a written statement that neither they nor other members of their household were ever convicted of one of the listed felonies. Urge the Senate to oppose or modify the amendment to address these serious problems. For an in-depth discussion of this amendment, see the CBPP Off the Charts blog.

Action Alert: Ecumenical Advocacy Days

Can't Make it to Ecumenical Advocacy Days?

Join with thousands of faith voices in our 2013 Legislative ASK:

A FULL, MULTI-YEAR REAUTHORIZATION OF THE FARM BILL.

Our nation’s food and farm policies, as embodied in the farm bill, affect people from rural America to inner cities, from our local communities to less industrialized regions around the world. The farm bill is the single largest piece of federal policy impacting our food system. A good farm bill can strengthen nutrition programs, help our struggling rural communities, support new and socially disadvantaged farmers, enhance global food aid to the world’s most impoverished, and encourage farming and ranching practices that protect God’s creation. Congress failed to pass a farm bill in 2012, and a number of important programs that promote a just and healthy food system are currently without funding. Other programs are continuing, but need the certainty provided by a multi-year farm bill.

Congress should enact a farm bill this year that alleviates hunger and malnutrition, supports vibrant farms and healthy communities, and protects God’s creation. Send an email to Congress, urging them to support a full, multi-yearreauthorization of the farm bill that:

Alleviates hunger and malnutrition:

Protects and strengthens programs that reduce hunger and improve nutrition in the United States. We ask that funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP (formerly known as food stamps) be protected from cuts and harmful structural changes that would increase hunger in our nation.

Sustains robust international food aid and improves the nutritional quality of food aid. In view of the ongoing threat of high food prices, natural disasters and humanitarian crises around the world, we ask for robust funding for programs that provide emergency and non-emergency food aid for the hungry. As the world’s largest provider of international food aid, the United States must also lead the way in improving its quality to maximize the nutritional benefit.

Supports vibrant farms and strong communities:

Helps beginning farmers and farmers from socially disadvantaged groups start in the business of agriculture.

We ask Congress to support new farmers by funding programs that are critical in growing the next generation of farmers, an imperative goal in light of the aging of American farmers and in bolstering women and minority farmers.

Builds local and regional food systems and the rural communities at their center.

For communities in the United States, we ask Congress to support programs such as the Farmers Market Promotion Program, which provides new markets for small and mid-sized farmers in suburbs and cities, offering consumers the opportunity to support local producers and giving people in vulnerable communities greater access to fresh food.

For communities around the world, we ask Congress to reform international food aid by purchasing more of the food in the areas where it is consumed. The Local and Regional Procurement Program can help more hungry people for the same cost, support rural development in low-income countries and increase global food security.

Protects God’s creation:

Strengthens policies and programs that promote conservation of soil and water and protect creation from environmental degradation. We ask Congress to protect funding for conservation programs, particularly those for working lands such as the Conservation Stewardship Program, which have substantial waiting lists and serve a diverse base of farmers and ranchers. Funds for these programs should not be used to pay for other priorities. Farms and ranches account for a majority of the land base in many states, and play a key role in ensuring soil and water quality and in maintaining open space and wildlife habitat.

Email Congress Now!

The Farm Bill Expired – What Now?

The Farm Bill Expired – What Now?

By Leslie Woods, Rep. for Domestic Poverty & Environmental Issues and

Nelson Cowan, Intern for Public Witness

As Presbyterians trying to make faithful political decisions, we can find solace and agreement in that “...we seek a sustainable stewardship society shaped for the common good..." (220th General Assembly, 2012).

Despite its misleading name, the Farm Bill affects all facets of society - from urban populations, to rural communities, to developing countries. According to the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC):

The farm bill is the nation’s major food and agricultural policy vehicle and is about much more than the big ticket items: food stamps, crop insurance, and commodity support.  The farm bill is also about conservation and environmental protection, rural economic and community development, food system reform and agricultural research.[i]

The Farm Bill was up for reauthorization this year, but lack of action in Congress allowed the 2008 Farm Bill to expire as of last Monday, October 1, 2012. What changes and what does not?

The Farm Bill's largest component, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as Food Stamps), will remain funded through at least March, 2013, due to a Continuing Resolution (CR) to fund the government for six months of Fiscal year 2013. Similarly, the next largest component of the farm bill, crop insurance, will remain funded because of the Federal Crop Insurance Act, which is permanently authorized and therefore, does not require reauthorization along with most other Ag programs.[ii] Together, these two programs account for approximately 90% of Farm Bill appropriations. Although these programs are secure for the time being, action must be taken by Congress to pass a new Farm Bill in order to make longer, more secure arrangements.

What are the immediate implications of the expired Farm Bill?  -- mostly conservation and sustainable agriculture programs will be affected right away -- Farm law reverts to permanent law contained in the 1938 and 1949 farm bills.  Each successive farm bill since that time has suspended permanent law for the period of time provided for the newly enacted farm bill, but never before has reauthorization of the Farm Bill been scheduled for an election year.  The vitriolic politics surrounding the current election have made it virtually impossible for elected officials to come to a compromise, even on a bill that usually gains bipartisan support without trouble.  Without a new authorization, policy crafted for a very different agricultural society will take effect.

In short, as the NSAC puts it,

With no new farm bill or extension, the programs that address rural and urban job creation, natural resource conservation, renewable energy, and improved production and access to healthy food are in big trouble.

With the expiration of the farm bill, farmers will not be enrolling sensitive land in ecological restoration projects.  Training opportunities for the next generation of beginning farmers will dry up.  Microloans to the very small businesses that drive economic recovery in rural America will cease.  Emerging farmers markets in rural and urban food deserts will not have access to startup grants.  Organic farming researchers will not be able to compete for any dedicated research funds.

Grants to encourage on-farm energy conservation, to fund fruit and vegetable research, to assist minority and tribal farmers, to rebuild local and regional food systems, to invest in emerging farmer and community owned food businesses with high consumer demand, and to transfer land to young farmers will also be put on hold.

These are casualties of Congressional inaction.[iii]

The PC(USA) has strongly supported programs that support rural communities, new and disadvantaged farmers, and sustainable and ecologically sound agriculture.  With the expiration of the bill, many small, but innovative and effective programs have either completely expired or will cease to entertain new enrollment. 

One such program is the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP), which was developed to address and counteract the challenge of the rising age of U.S. farmers and the concern that the younger generation will not be equipped to continue in this line of work.  Despite being one of the most successful programs in the Farm Bill, it will receive no funding until further action is taken.  Thus, new farmer training opportunities, microloans, and start-up grants will cease. Furthermore, organic farming researchers will no longer be able to compete for dedicated research funds, thereby stifling innovation, a hallmark of our nation's ethos.

What about SNAP and other nutrition programs?  In 2011, SNAP kept 3.9 million people above the poverty line.[iv] The advantage of a program like SNAP is that its mandatory nature ensures that it can serve everyone who has need and is eligible.  It functions counter-cyclically with the economy, expanding when times are difficult and more people are in need, and contracting as the economy improves and more people go back to work.  Because of the elastic nature of this program, it is one of our most effective anti-hunger tools during times of economic downtown, not to mention that is puts spending power into the hands of people who need to spend in their local grocery stores, pumping new cash into local economies and a sluggish recovery.  Despite the fact that SNAP makes up the single highest expenditure in the Farm Bill, it should not be one targeted for savings.

The Legislative Situation:

The U.S. Senate has passed a Farm Bill reauthorization, the “Agriculture Reform, Food, and Jobs Act” by a bipartisan vote of 64-35 on June 21^st.  The House of Representatives also has a bill, which has passed out of committee but not been considered by the full House.  The House bill makes significant reductions in SNAP funding, upwards of $16 billion over the next 10 years compared to the Senate bill’s $4.49 billion reduction, which, though smaller, remains too much in a time of economic crisis and sluggish recovery.[v]

It is difficult to predict what will happen with these bills in coming months.  Some predict that these bills will get pushed through during the lame duck session and combined into a joint bill. But others are skeptical that Congress will come to any agreement during the Lame Duck session of Congress following the election.  Indeed, as people who believe that God desires daily bread for each of us, the next six months will be crucial for advocating for a just farm bill that ensures our nation’s agricultural priorities support the farmers who need help, develop sustainable, healthy, local food systems, protect the natural world, and ensure that the great bounty of this nation, which is abundant indeed, reaches each one of us, so that every person might have enough.

Stay tuned to the Office of Public Witness blog and action alert email system for ways that you can weigh in as the Farm Bill debate drags on.

"As followers of Jesus Christ who live in relative affluence, American Presbyterians must consider the possibility that God places a responsibility upon each of us to use all the means available to us to see that just and sustainable human development becomes a reality for the whole human family in harmony with all of God's creation."

- Hope for a Global Future: Toward a Just and Sustainable Human Development

Approved by the 208^th General Assembly in 1996

Further Reading:

National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition’s blog

Presbyterian Hunger Program:

            PHP Post, the most recent issue includes an article on the Farm Bill

            Just Living, sustainable lifestyle choices from the Enough for Everyone Program

            Campaign for Fair Food, join advocates in calling corporations to fair food purchasing

Save the Date for our upcoming Advocacy Training Weekend focusing on Food Justice, including Compassion Peace and Justice Training Day and Ecumenical Advocacy Days!

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[i] http://sustainableagriculture.net/blog/life-without-a-farm-bill-whats-at-stake/

[ii] http://sustainableagriculture.net/blog/faq-on-farm-bill-expiration/

[iii] http://sustainableagriculture.net/blog/life-without-a-farm-bill-whats-at-stake/

[iv] "As Poverty Remains Unacceptably High, Coalition on Human Needs Calls on

Congress to Preserve Programs Proven to Lift Families out of Poverty." Coalition of Human Needs. September 12, 2012.

[v] http://frac.org/leg-act-center/farm-bill-2012/