Frank Lucas is Hopeful to Get a 2013 Farm Bill Done, But Markup is Still Months Away 

Following the opening business meeting of the House Agriculture Committee in the 113th Congress, Committee Chairman Frank Lucas spoke with me. He said budgetary issues are getting the lion's share of attention in Washington right now, and a 2013 farm bill, unfortunately, will have to take a back seat for awhile. The new reality on a mark up for the 2013 Farm Bill could easily be April or May.

Lucas said the main job facing him and Ranking Member Collin Peterson is to bide their time and get a farm bill on the House agenda when the timing is right. He said that task never really ended at the end of the last session, but it "is the ongoing effort both he and I have been engaged in trying, whether it's with the speaker, the majority floor leader, the whip, trying to get the attention of leadership, of the majority leadership, and get them to understand that while there are a lot of important things going on here-budget issues, CRs, sequestration, and war and peace, nonetheless a comprehensive farm bill affects not only everybody in rural America that produced that food and fiber, but every consumer."

Lucas said the task won't be easy.

"Right now, we are in a position where, like certain parts of last session, it's hard to get the attention span of what I call management. There's so many things going on all around them simultaneously, but I'm optimistic we can get her done. We came very close in the last session and, even though we technically start over in this session of Congress with a brand new bill, a lot of work has been done. A lot of the hearings have been done. We just need to be given just a little bit of flexibility so that we can do our work."

Lucas said there is a lot of clutter that has to be cleared before the farm bill will get much consideration.

Click here for our full interview.

 

AFBF President Applauds Senate Introduction of 2013 Farm Bill 

American Farm Bureau Federation President Bob Stallman issued the following statement after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid introduced the 2013 Farm Bill:

"The American Farm Bureau Federation is pleased that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has introduced in the 113th Congress the same version of the farm bill that was passed by the Senate last session. We are also encouraged to hear that Sen. Reid is making the farm bill one of several privileged, top priority legislative actions this year. This represents real hope for farmers and ranchers that the Senate, like last session, will aggressively move forward on a long-term farm bill to give farmers the risk management certainty we need.

"It will ultimately take real bipartisan cooperation to get the farm bill to the finish line, and we are confident the House Agriculture Committee will craft a compatible bill. We are hopeful that Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and the committee's new ranking member, Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), will work quickly to build on the bipartisan work that was the hallmark of the Senate farm bill last year. And we encourage House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and other members of the House to follow the example set last year by House Agriculture Chairman Frank Lucas (R-Okla.) and ranking member Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) in their actions to pass a bipartisan farm bill that worked for all Americans out of their committee."

You can read more by clicking here.

Oklahoma Secretary of Ag Jim Reese Hails OYE as a Good Investment for State Dollars

The Oklahoma State Secretary of Agriculture, Jim Reese, is hopeful that legal action brought against the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, the State Board of Agriculture, the Governor and several Lawmakers over an appropriation that helps fund the Oklahoma Youth Expo will be concluded early here in 2013. The controversy over this appropriation surfaced in the final days of the 2012 State Legislative session- and litigation was filed in Oklahoma County District Court after the money was approved by the Legislature and the appropriation was made in August 2012 in accordance with guidelines that authorize a public-private partnership between the state and private entities to help farmers and ranchers promote agriculture-related endeavors.

This past September, a lawsuit was filed by State Representative Mike Reynolds- a Republican from Oklahoma City and Mike Ritze, a Republican from Broken Arrow. They are claiming the state of Oklahoma has no right to contract with private entities and provide them public monies.

In talking with State Secretary Jim Reese on Wednesday, the farmer from north central Oklahoma expressed confidence to the Oklahoma Farm Report that he has had , all along, the legal authority to contract with the Oklahoma Youth Expo, that the Legislature properly appropriated the money and that the Youth Expo offers a way to invest into the future of Oklahoma by supporting youth in 4-H and FFA programs in all 77 counties. He calls it a "good investment."

With the 2013 Oklahoma Youth Expo less than two months away, Reese would love to have the litigation put behind the State Board and the State Department of Agriculture. He indicates that mid February could see a possible dismissal of one of the two lawsuits filed by the lawmakers. 

Click here for our story with Jim Reese on the value of the OYE to the state and his thoughts on the controversy that has stretched from last year's show into 2013.

The January Cattle on Feed Report- Will Placements Be Up or Be Down?

Rich Nelson with Allendale believes that the recent trends of smaller placements and smaller numbers of cattle on feed compared to one year ago will continue this coming Friday when the January 2013 Cattle on Feed Report is released by USDA.

December Placements are expected to be 3.8% lower than last year. Feedlot margins remain negative at this time. This represents 20 straight months of losses. This December estimate is not as low as previous months, from 5% to 19% lower, as some extra calves were moved off winter wheat pastures. Cattle placed in December will be marketed from May through September.
     
Allendale anticipates a Marketing total 5.2% lower than December of 2011. This is made after a 4.6% reduction due to a calendar adjustment for this month.

Meanwhile, the Director of the Livestock Market Information Center, Jim Robb, believes that this is the month that we could actually see placements edge above the levels of January 2012. He told Eric Atkinson with Agriculture Today that "the placements could be up fully 4% from a year ago" while marketings could be slightly less than one year ago, because of having one less market day this year compared to 2012. he expects on feed numbers to be about four percent under that of 2012.

Click here for more and to hear Jim Robb's comments on the K-State Radio Network.

Agriculture Committee Approves Rules and Announces Subcommittee Assignments

Oklahoma Congressman Frank Lucas and members of his House Agriculture Committee met to formally organize and to adopt the Committee's rules for the 113th Congress. The Committee rules approved maintain the enhanced transparency and accountability standards that were used in the last Congress under House Republican leadership. This includes posting the text of bills online for the public no fewer than 24 hours prior to a business meeting; and providing both live and archived webcasts of all hearings and business meetings. 

In his opening remarks, Lucas set the tone for the committee's efforts this year:

"This is a new Congress and a new opportunity to reauthorize a five-year comprehensive farm bill. And, I pledge to work with the Secretary, Ranking Member Peterson, members of this Committee, my House and Senate colleagues, and all interested parties to complete our work and ensure our investment in American agriculture. It will take all of us working together to get it done."  (You can read more of Lucas's opening statement by clicking here.)

The Committee also announced membership for the five Subcommittees. Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank D. Lucas (OK-3) and Ranking Minority Member Collin C. Peterson (MN-7) serve as ex officio members of all subcommittees.

For a full list of subcommittee assignments, please click here.

Oklahoma Department of Agriculture Seeks Nominees for Hall of Fame

Oklahoma agriculture has a rich history of progress. The years of success enjoyed by the industry are thanks to agriculturalists committed to striving for excellence. In 1998 the Governor's Outstanding Achievement Award in Agriculture was created to recognize those who have helped lead the industry while demonstrating exemplary personal values and pursuing agricultural achievements in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry is now accepting nominations for this award. The award winner is inducted into the Oklahoma Agricultural Hall of Fame located at the agency headquarters in Oklahoma City.   

Examples of ag enterprises eligible nominees can be involved with are: livestock and crop production, agribusiness, forestry, horticulture and nursery management. In addition to considering nominees' production agriculture involvement, the application also accounts for leadership in agricultural and state organizations as well as additional awards and honors.   

"The Governor's Outstanding Achievement Award in Agriculture gives us the opportunity to recognize those individuals who have made a positive and lasting impact on agriculture in our state," said Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture Jim Reese.

The deadline for all nominations is Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 5 p.m. Recipients will be selected by a committee of representatives from agricultural commodity organizations and farm and ranch organizations. 

For more information on the nomination process, please click here.

Names of Note- Will Gilmer, Ron Kirk and Dale Moore

Alabama Dairy producer Will Gilmer has been selected as one of the four Faces of Agriculture by  the US Farmers Ranchers Alliance for 2013- and we jumped on the long line with Will yesterday morning after he complete his milking duties on his dairy farm.  You can hear Will's story that he told us- and his passion to explain agriculture to consumers- which he gets a chance to do in the coming year with this honor. Click here for our conversation with this bright young shining star in the Ag Social Media world that is found on our website.

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Another Obama Administration appointee has decided to head back to the private sector- this time- it's the US Trade Admbassador for the White House- Ron Kirk. The National Corn Growers Association thanked U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk for his commitment to promoting global trade during his tenure. Kirk announced yesterday he will leave his post at USTR at the end of February.


"The National Corn Growers Association greatly appreciates and thanks U.S. Trade Representative Kirk for his tireless efforts to promote American agricultural products in the global marketplace," NCGA President Pam Johnson said. "We applaud his efforts to pass and implement the three free trade agreements with Korea, Colombia and Panama. In addition, we appreciate the pivotal role he played in lifting the outdated Jackson-Vanik amendment."  Click here for more from the Corn Growers on the contributions made by Ron Kirk over the past four years.

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American Farm Bureau's Dale Moore is being promoted- As executive director of public policy, Moore, an agricultural policy veteran, will manage the organization's lobbying staff, according to AFBF Executive Vice President and Treasurer Julie Anna Potts.

Moore takes over from Mark Maslyn, who is retiring from Farm Bureau after a thirty year career in Washington.  Dale Moore is a Kansas native- was a key player at the NCBA Washington DC office before joining USDA in 2001. At that time,  Moore was appointed by President George W. Bush as the Agriculture Department's chief of staff. He served four individuals appointed as secretaries of agriculture-Ann M. Veneman, Mike Johanns, Chuck Conner (acting) and Ed Schafer. He also provided transition assistance to President Barack Obama's agricultural advisors.   

Moore landed at AFBF as he left the USDA four years ago- and will now shape the lobbying efforts of the nation's largest general farm organization.  Click here for the full story we have posted on our website about the move by Farm Bureau to place Dale Moore into this position.