(Continued from Page A 1)
Dairy Compact operating in
New England is a top priority.
In addition, Farm Bureau’s rec
ommendations for the next
Farm Bill will be discussed with
lawmakers.
Congressman Tim Holden
(D-6th Dist.) will be guest
speaker at the Washington Tour
banquet Wednesday evening,
March 14. PFB President Don
aldson will discuss PFB’s prior
ity issues during a breakfast
meeting for Pennsylvania’s con
gressional delegation the follow
ing morning.
Here’s more about the issues
Farm Bureau members will be
discussing with their representa
tives during PFB’s Washington
Tour;
• Death taxes. The federal
estate tax, which can be as high
as 5S percent, can destroy a
family farm when survivors are
forced to sell off property or
equipment to pay the taxes.
Congress passed legislation to
eliminate the so-called “death
tax” last summer, but it was
vetoed by President Clinton.
Farm Bureau is supporting a bill
to be introduced this session by
Reps. Dunn (R-Wash.) and
Tanner (D-Tenn.). The Dunn/
Tanner proposal nearly doubles
the death tax exemption to $1.3
million and cuts tax rates by five
percent per year until the estate
tax is completely eliminated.
Farm Bureau also supports
the Dunn/Tanner provision pre
serving the stepped-up basis for
tax calculations. Farmers keep
farmland an average of 30 years,
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Pa. Farmers To Meet With
Representatives On Farm Issues
during which time inflation can
increase its value dramatically.
If stepped-up basis is not main
tained, farmers would be subject
to a potentially huge capital
gains tax if they sell inherited
property. Using carryover basis
instead of stepped-up basis
would subject a person to taxes
on capital gains during both his
or her’s and the previous
owner’s ownership.
• FARRM accounts. Farm
Bureau supports creation of tax
deferred savings accounts,
known as Farm and Ranch Risk
Management (FARRM) ac
counts, to give farmers a new
tool to help get through years
when income is down because of
low prices or poor crops.
FARRM account legislation has
been introduced as freestanding
bills, H.R. 662 and S. 313, and as
part of a comprehensive agricul
tural tax package, S. 312 the
Tax Empowerment and Relief
For Farmers and Fisherman
Act. With FARRM accounts,
farmers could save 20 percent of
their net farm income per year
in an interest-bearing account.
Funds could be kept in the ac
count for up to five years.
FARRM account funds could be
withdrawn at any time and
would be taxed as income.
• Dairy prices. Farm Bureau
is urging members of Congress
to cosponsor legislation to be in
troduced to expand the North
east Dairy Compact and to
ratify the Southern Dairy Com
pact. The federal milk order
system establishes minimum
MID-ATLANTIC,
a qnsvstems
prices paid to farmers for milk
and does not preempt the power
of states to regulate milk prices
above the federally-imposed
minimum level. Dairy compact
legislation gives states the au
thority to work together through
a regional commission, com
posed of consumer representa
tives and farmers, to establish a
price to ensure a stable supply of
fluid milk. Dairy compacts are
self-financed and require no tax
funded support.
The Northeast Dairy Com
pact, which began in six states in
1997 as the result of federal leg
islation, has paid more than
$135 million about 4,00 dairy
farmers in New England and
eastern New York. Pennsylva
nia approved legislation in 1999
enabling the state’s dairy pro
ducers to become part of the
Compact if authorized by Con
gress. Had Pennsylvania been a
member of the Compact last
year, dairy farmers in the state
would have received $122 mil
lion in addition income a
helpful amount during a time of
low milk prices.
Farm Bureau also supports an
extension of the current dairy
price support program which
has been prolonged on a year
by-year basis since 1999. The
price support program provides
a safety net for milk prices.
• Farm policy. Congressional
testimony has already been
gathered in preparation for writ
ing a new Farm Bill. Current
legislation expires after fiscal
year 2002. Farm Bureau has re-
Cadman
NMR MUIMMNT
ja»niu*jw3
quested that the next Farm Bill
increase the funding baseline for
agriculture programs to $l2 bil
lion per year, which will elimi
nate the need for further
agriculture emergency spending
bills. The additional money will
be used for income support, con
servation, research and export
promotion, among other pro
grams. Farm income support
should operate on an counter
cyclical basis to offset swings in
farm income. In addition long
term farm spending, Farm
Bureau is seeking $9 billion in
emergency assistance for farm
ers as soon as possible. Farm
economists have predicted a
fourth straight year of record
low commodity prices.
• TMDL regulatory expan
sion. In August 1999, the EPA
expanded its total maximum
daily loads (TMDL) program to
increase regulatory control over
runoff from “nonpoint” sources
identified as agriculture and for
estry. TMDLs are the amount of
pollutant a body of water can
absorb before it becomes im
paired. For the previous 30
years, EPA had focused on
cleaning up “point” sources of
pollution such as factories and
treatment plants. After legisla
tors criticized EPA for failing to
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adequately address the techni
cal, financial, and scientific
issues surrounding its new
TMDL regulations for nonpoint
sources. Congress took action
last year to delay the rules until
after October 2001. Farm
Bureau supports legislation and
regulation that encourages
locally designed and imple
mented solutions to water qual
ity problems. Farm Bureau
supports voluntary incentive
based approaches based on
sound scientific information,
technical assistance to landown
ers, and site-specifically flexibil
ity.
• Animal feeding operations.
The EPA has proposed in
creased water quality regulatory
requirements for CAFOs (Con
centrated Animal Feeding Oper
ations). These proposals include
regulating land application of
manure as a “point source” of
pollution, the co-permitting of
CAFOs with animal processors,
and expanding the number of
farms classified as CAFOs.
Hearings have been held
before the House and Senate Ag
riculture Committees on the
CAFO regulations. Farm
Bureau opposes this regulatory
approach to water quality pro
tection.
Breeding for
Higher Forage Quality
Cimarron VR and Hay Grazer
alfalfas provide the ultimate in
high forage quality.
Cimarron VR and Hay Grazer produce larger
leaves and finer stems than other alfalfas
Larger leaves and finer stems mean more
protein and higher TDN
Cimarron VR and Hay Grazer have belter leaf
retention than other varieties Extra resis
tance to leaf diseases allows these varieties to
hold their leaves better, both on the plant and
in the windrow So you get more leaves in
every bale of hay Break open a bale of
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