For the first time since early 2020, the dominant topic in the American policy debate is not the COVID-19 pandemic. With national attention consumed by protests, riots and the state of race relations in the United States, efforts continue in Washington to stabilize and stimulate an American economy that was brought to a screeching halt … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Sonny Perdue Awaits Full Senate Vote Last week, the Senate Agriculture Committee easily approved Sonny Perdue’s nomination for the position of United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary. The committee favorably reported his nomination by voice vote; however, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) was the lone vote of opposition. Gillibrand stood behind her vote, … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity 2018 Farm Bill Hearings Officially Underway; Kansas’ “Big First” Representative Roger Marshall Welcomes Panelists Last week, leaders of the Senate Agriculture Committee – Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) – traveled to Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas, to kick off the first 2018 Farm Bill hearing. The discussion … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Agriculture Committee to Debate SNAP Purchase Restrictions This week, the House Agriculture Committee will hold a hearing to explore the effects of restricting certain purchases for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients. The committee will hear from five witnesses representing varied backgrounds. The witnesses are said to represent the American Enterprise Institute, … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Outlook for the 115th Congress On Tuesday, January 31, the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee – led by Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) – held a brief business meeting to adopt the committee’s rules and funding resolution for the 115th Congress. Chairman Roberts announced that a separate … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) On Thursday, May 12, the House Agriculture Committee will hold a hearing to examine issues some retailers face while navigating SNAP requirements. During the first 16 months of the 114th Congress, the House Agriculture Committee, along with its Subcommittee on Nutrition, held 14 hearings that focused on SNAP. … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity President May Highlight Obamacare Successes in State of the Union Address On Tuesday, January 12, President Barack Obama will give his final State of the Union address to Congress. While details of the speech have yet to be released, last week, the President vetoed Congress’s budget reconciliation bill, which aimed to dismantle the … Continue Reading
Regulatory Activity Proposed Rules for Vehicles to Control GHG The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Transportation have announced proposed rules to create a “comprehensive Phase 2 Heavy-Duty National Program” intended to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and fuel consumption for new on-road heavy-duty vehicles. The program focuses on phasing in new technology … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Farm Bill Conference Progress This week, we expect the four farm bill conference principals to take significant steps in bringing an agreed upon bill to the House and Senate floors this month. The conference committee is likely to meet for two to three days to negotiate the remaining issues of a nearly completed … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Farm Bill Conference: Priority Issues At-A-Glance On October 30, the 41 House and Senate farm bill conferees convened at a public meeting to formally kick-off negotiations, although informal talks began a few months ago between agriculture leadership’s staff. Despite many conferees cautioning against pre-maturely drawing lines on issues, it was clear what issues … Continue Reading
LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY Farm Bill Conference This Wednesday, October 30, marks the official start to the farm bill conference, which will be a public meeting involving the 41 House and Senate conferees. For months, agriculture leadership and their staff have met behind the scenes on an informal basis to start conversations on reconciling the two farm … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Farm Bill This week, agriculture leadership in both chambers will likely announce a date for the farm bill conference to begin. Last week, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) shared that the farm bill conference would begin when both chambers are in session, which means that a date will likely be scheduled … Continue Reading
LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY Farm Bill As Congress returns from the August recess, the House agenda for September will include floor consideration of a nutrition title bill that looks to enact major reforms to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps). The Nutrition Reform and Work Opportunity Act aims to cut $40 billion … Continue Reading
The public debate over SNAP cuts and other reforms has continued in anticipation of Congress’ return after the Labor Day weekend. This week, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) released a study strongly criticizing the House Nutrition Title Working Group’s proposal to cut $40 billion from SNAP over a ten-year period. The report … Continue Reading
