Today, House Agriculture Ranking Member David Scott released the below statement following the unveiling of the long-awaited partisan farm bill text by Agriculture Committee Republicans.
“The discussion draft released by Chairman Thompson today confirms my worst fears: House Republicans plan to pay for the farm bill by taking food out of the mouths of America’s hungry children, restricting farmers from receiving the climate-smart conservation funding they so desperately need, and barring the USDA from providing financial assistance to farmers in times of crisis.
“The economic impact of the SNAP cuts alone would be staggering. A $27 billion reduction in food purchasing power would not only increase hunger, but it would also reduce demand for jobs in the agriculture, transportation, manufacturing, and grocery sectors.
“Food has become a natural security issue, as pointed out by experts at our recent hearing on China, and weakening our ability to feed the most vulnerable members of our communities is shortsighted and wrong.
“The Republican plan to eliminate the Agriculture Secretary’s CCC discretionary authority would tie the hands of our government to assist farmers during natural disasters and pandemics. “The funding proposal that the Chairman has put forward does a disservice to American agriculture because it doesn’t provide a path forward to getting a bill passed on the House Floor.”
