Incoming House Agriculture Committee Chairman-elect Lucas (R-OK) issued a statement welcoming new Republican members who have been appointed to serve on the Agriculture Committee in the 112th Congress, which begins on Jan. 5.
"I am pleased to welcome our new members to the Agriculture Committee,” Chairman-elect Lucas said. “The work of our Committee affects the lives of every American. We must work to ensure that there is proper oversight of the administration, that rural America has opportunities for job growth, and that our farmers and ranchers have the necessary tools and certainty they need to provide us with a safe, affordable, and abundant food, fiber, feed, and fuel supply."
The new Republican members on the Committee are:Crawford (AR);DesJarlais (TN);Elmers (NC); Fincher (TN); Gibbs (OH); Gibson (NY); Hartzler (MO); Huelskamp (KS); Hultgren (IL); Ribble (WI); Roby (AL); Schilling (IL); Scott (GA); Southerland (FL); Stutzman (IN); and Tipton (CO). Those italicized denote Representatives-elect who have cotton in their congressional districts.
House Approves Compromise Tax Package
The House overwhelmingly approved (277-148) on a bi-partisan basis (139 Democrats and 138 Republicans voted in favor) a compromise tax package (see 12-10-10 Cotton’s Week for summary of provisions).
The payroll tax cut will expire at the end of ’11, as will a number of business “extenders.” Extended unemployment benefits will end in 13 months. The tax breaks that apply to all income brackets expire at the end of ’12. Republican leaders have indicated that when they take control of the House next year, they may propose to permanently extend the ’01 and ’03 tax cuts.
The Senate overwhelmingly passed (81-19) the identical measure on Dec. 15, so the legislation now goes to the President for his signature.
The estate tax provision in the legislation remained unchanged from the Senate-passed provision that contains a 35% rate with an exemption level of $5 million indexed for inflation.
Omnibus Bill Plan Dropped
Senate Majority Leader Reid (D-NV) dropped plans to push ahead on a $1.1 trillion omnibus FY11 spending bill. He announced his decision after nine Republican senators who had pledged to vote for the measure told the Democratic leader they would have to oppose the bill. As a result, the Senate likely will consider a short-term continuing resolution (CR) to fund the federal government into next year --because the current stop-gap bill funding the government expires on Dec. 18.
The omnibus bill had been developed by Senate Appropriations Chairman Inouye (D-HI) and ranking member Cochran (R-MS) during the fall as a way to complete work on FY11 appropriations because none of the regular 12 bills have been passed. Sens. Inouye and Cochran significantly reduced overall funding levels in the omnibus compared to the individual bills considered by the Appropriations Committee earlier this year, but even with lower levels of spending, the bill was criticized because it contains about $8 billion in earmarks.
The House-passed CR, which runs until next Sept. 30, carries food safety legislation as well as items such as the extension of federal highway and aviation programs. Republicans, however, oppose that CR, and Senate Minority Leader McConnell (R-KY) wants one that expires next February.
While that CR is negotiated, Sen. Reid said the Senate would consider other matters during a weekend session: the START nuclear arms treaty and the DREAM Act, which was passed by the House and would create a path to citizenship for young people who go to college or serve in the US military.
NCC Planting Intentions Survey Underway
The NCC’s annual survey of ‘11 planting intentions recently was distributed to upland and extra-long staple (ELS) cotton producers across the Cotton Belt. The survey, conducted each year to aid with industry planning and policy deliberations, provides the basis for the economic outlook presented to delegates during the NCC Annual Meeting in early February. Survey results will be presented during the Joint Meeting of Program Committees on Saturday morning, Feb. 5.
To enhance the survey’s accuracy, producers are encouraged to respond by the Jan. 18 deadline. The current survey was distributed through a combination of regular mail and email with the intent of reaching all cotton farms across the Belt. Growers who did not receive a survey may contact the NCC via email at econsurvey@cotton.org for survey instructions.
SURE Sign-up to Begin on Jan. 10
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the sign-up period for the ’09 crop year Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments (SURE) program begins on Jan. 10, ’11. To be eligible for SURE, a farm must have: 1) at least a 10% production loss on a crop of economic significance; 2) a policy or plan of insurance under the Federal Crop Insurance Act or the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) for all economically significant crops; and 3) been physically located in a county that was declared a primary disaster county or contiguous county by the Agriculture Secretary under a Secretarial Disaster Designation. Without a Secretarial Disaster Designation, individual producers may be eligible if the actual production on the farm is less than 50% of the normal production on the farm due to a natural disaster.
For more information on the ’09 SURE program, visit any Farm Service Agency county office or http://www.fsa.usda.gov/sure.
Senate Republicans Request Delay of NPDES Permits
In a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, 12 Republican senators, led by Inhofe (R-OK) and Chambliss (R-GA), charged that the agency expanded the reach of its "general permit" for pesticide sprays over water in a second draft version that is now under review by the Office of Management and Budget. The second draft permit, which has not been released for public scrutiny, includes an additional requirement that will compel any government agency overseeing an identified pesticide use, such as mosquito control or irrigation district, to obtain an NPDES permit.
The Sixth Circuit Court decision that effectively subjected pesticide sprays over water to a double-permit system, under both the Clean Water Act and the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, & Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), becomes effective in April ’11. The Senators asked Jackson to "either seek a delay from the court or use its authority to suspend enforcement of the new permit" until EPA's proposed changes to its rule can be fully digested by states where pest-control districts may now have to obtain an EPA permit.
EPA Rethinking Drift Language
During a recent pesticide advisory committee meeting, EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) announced it is planning to revise controversial label language proposed earlier in a draft pesticide registration notice meant to address pesticide drift. The proposed revision is in response to industry and grower concerns over the proposed language.
Instead of directing agricultural users to not apply a pesticide "in a manner that results in spray [or dust] drift that could cause an adverse effect to people or any other non-target site," OPP has suggested directing such users not to apply a pesticide "in a manner that results in spray [or dust] drift that harms people or any other non-target organisms or sites."
EPA’s original proposal was issued in Nov. ’09, and industry and grower stakeholders immediately took issue with the "could cause" language, arguing it resulted in a de facto no drift policy given that it suggests all drift could cause adverse effects. Furthermore, they argued the language departed from FIFRA, which authorizes the registration and use of pesticides in a manner that doesn't cause "unreasonable adverse effects on the environment," while taking into account the costs and benefits of a pesticide's use.
EPA believes its revised language is consistent with the FIFRA unreasonable adverse effects standard.
House GOP Plans Extensive EPA Oversight
House Republicans are planning for extensive committee oversight of EPA in the 112th Congress. Rep. Cantor (R-VA), voted to be House Majority Leader next year, vowed that House committees will lead the GOP's review of costly executive rules and laws and will produce interim and final reports through the first half of ’11.
Several incoming Republican chairmen of committees with EPA oversight already have vowed hearings into the costs and scope of EPA rules. Rep. Lucas (R-OK), incoming House Agriculture Committee chairman, is expected to investigate EPA's implementation of the FIFRA. Additional oversight also may take place within the House Science & Technology Committee, which oversees some issues related to FIFRA.
Rep. Issa (R-CA) also is planning frequent hearings on EPA and other agencies as chairman of the Oversight & Government Reform Committee. In response, Administrator Jackson has launched a preemptive defense of her agency's agenda in advance of expected assaults from Congressional Republicans, citing polls that showed broad public support for maintaining the government's role in environmental regulation and government analyses that have found that the health benefits of EPA rules far outweigh their costs.
Facing this push by the incoming House GOP majority to oversee federal agencies' rules, the White House is stepping up its oversight of EPA and other agencies' pending policies in a move that the Administration's regulatory review czar, Cass Sunstein, argues is helping to address industry concerns about the costs of the policies.
In a Nov. 30 speech at the Brookings Institution, Sunstein cited a host of regulatory review measures that he says work to "improve" regulations by delaying compliance dates, creating regulatory exemptions and softening their costs, an especially important concern given the continuing recession.
In what seems to be a change in administration policy, Sunstein touted the use of cost-benefit analysis as a "noteworthy development," praised public participation as a way to soften the cost of rules, called for early review of regulations that could harm small businesses and cited several examples where his office has amended EPA rules in response to industry concerns.
EPA also is slowing development of some of its major rules, including controversial rules setting new ozone air quality standards and emissions standards for industrial boilers, a move that is winning praise from industry groups.
’11 Beltwide Production Conference Program Set
Following NCC Chairman and Texas producer Eddie Smith’s welcome and introductory remarks, the ’11 Beltwide Cotton Production Conference general session will feature: “2010 In Review,” two overviews of Resistance Education, a Washington update and “Cotton’s 2011 Market Outlook.” The latter will be presented by T. Jordan Lea, president of the American Cotton Shippers Assoc. and CEO of Eastern Trading Company in Greenville, SC, who will talk about market direction in ’11.
The NCC’s Bill Robertson, who is program coordinator, said the forum, Jan. 4-7, at the Marriott Marquis in Atlanta, GA, also will include an increased number of interactive workshops which will enable producers to get in-depth information on key issues such as herbicide resistance prevention/management, various insect pest concerns and irrigation.
“We’ll have presentations on new cotton varieties and their traits, new chemistries and pest control techniques, but also how these tools and practices interact and what a producer needs to think about in preparing for the 2011 growing season,” said Robertson, the NCC’s manager, Agronomy, Soils and Physiology. “Attendees will be able to discuss, for example, how to implement resistance prevention/management tactics and still meet the various conservation program requirements.”
The Cotton Consultants Conference will be offered for the fourth consecutive year. The conferences also include the Cotton Foundation Technical Exhibits and 13 Cotton Technical Conferences. Conference information is available at www.cotton.org/beltwide.
America’s Heartland Celebrates Cotton’s Role
America’s Heartland, the only nationally-distributed program celebrating American agriculture, takes a detailed look at cotton’s unique role in daily lives – in the episode, “Cotton-America’s Heartland Crop,” that begins airing across the United States during the week of Dec. 27.
Reporter Sarah Gardner travels to Newellton, LA, cotton producer Jay Hardwick’s operation with a focus on the role modern technology plays in the production and harvesting of cotton. Reporter Jason Shoultz discovers the steps involved in turning out nearly a billion pounds of yarn each year in his visit to North Carolina’s Parkdale Mills, which has been producing cotton yarn since 1916. Reporter Rob Stewart takes viewers to Lubbock, TX, where PYCO Industries turns cottonseed into cattle feed, cottonseed oil and cotton stuffing materials that may end up in mattresses. This show also looks at how farmers use cottonseed to add protein/fiber to dairy cattle diets, and viewers will discover how one Texas restaurant uses cottonseed oil to create the distinctive flavors of their chicken and catfish dishes.
Produced by KVIE Public Television and launched in ’05, the award-winning America’s Heartland travels throughout the nation, introducing non-farm viewers to the men and women who provide the food, fuel and fiber used and consumed daily. The series is seen on more than 230 PBS stations covering 60% of the nation and reaches viewers in rural communities with primetime broadcasts on RFD-TV.
Sales Steady, Shipments Strong
Net export sales for the week ending Dec. 9, ’10 were 204,400 bales (480-lb). This brings total ’10-11 sales to approximately 14.0 million bales. Total sales at the same point in the ’09-10 marketing year were approximately 5.7 million bales. Total new crop (’11-12) sales are 1.5 million bales.
Shipments for the week were 334,400 bales, bringing total exports to date to 3.4 million bales, compared with the 3.2 million bales at the comparable point in the ’09-10 marketing year.
Effective Dec. 17-23, ’10
Adjusted World Price, SLM 11/16
150.13 cents
*
Fine Count Adjustment ('09 Crop)
0.24 cents
Fine Count Adjustment ('10 Crop)
0.34 cents
Coarse Count Adjustment
0.00 cents
Marketing Loan Gain Value
0.00 cents
Import Quotas Open
7
Special Import Quota (480-lb bales)
485,084
ELS Payment Rate
0.00 cents
*No Adjustment Made Under Step I
Five-Day Average
Current 5 Lowest 3135 CFR Far East
166.97 cents
Forward 5 Lowest 3135 CFR Far East
112.36 cents
Coarse Count CFR Far East
NA
Current US CFR Far East
166.20 cents
Forward US CFR Far East
114.65 cents
'10-11 Weighted Marketing-Year Average Farm Price
Year-to-Date (Aug.-Oct.)
77.46 cents
**
**August-July average price used in determination of counter-cyclical payment
