Jennifer Obadia , PhD & Rebecca Nemec, MS On behalf of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC)

1. The 2012 Farm Bill Opportunities for Massachusetts Jennifer Obadia, PhD &Rebecca Nemec, MSOn behalf of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) January 14, 2012

2. Workshop agenda • Farm Bill overview • Farm Bill process • Outlook for 2012 Farm Bill • Two bills that help support local/regional food systems • How to get involved in the 2012 Farm Bill • Questions

3. Farm Bill: Fact or Fiction The Farm Bill is a piece of omnibus legislation that is passed approximately every five years.

4. Farm Bill: Fact or Fiction Over half of the funds allocated through the Farm Bill go to commodity payments.

5. Farm Bill: Fact or Fiction Approximately 2/3 of all funds allocated through the Farm Bill go to nutrition assistance programs.

6. Farm Bill: Fact or Fiction The 2008 Farm Bill was the first to provide support to specialty crop producers.

7. Farm Bill Overview • The Farm Bill is a piece of omnibus legislation that is passed on a five year cycle • The Farm Bill is cumulative, originating with the Agricultural Act of 1949 • Throughout the last 80 years farm policy has swayed between encouraging more or less, depending on the social/ political context of the time

8. Evolution of the Farm Bill • 1949: Introduction of the National School Lunch Program • 1970: Introduction of WIC • 1977: Introduction of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program • 1985: Introduction of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) • 1990: Introduction of the National Organic Program (NOP) • 1996: Introduction of the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) • 2002: Introduction of counter-cyclical payments • 2008: Introduction of specialty crops program

9. Current Farm Bill Titles • Commodities: direct payments, counter-cyclical payments and marketing loans • Conservation: Conservation Reserve Program, Conservation Stewardship Program & EQIP • Trade & Food Aid • Nutrition: SNAP, WIC and NSLP • Farm Credit: loan programs • Rural Development: business and community programs • Research: research and extension programs including biosecurity, biotechnology and organic

10. Current Farm Bill Titles • Forestry: forest management and agroforestry programs • Horticulture & Organic Agriculture: specialty crops and organic programs • Livestock: livestock production and country of origin labeling • Crop Insurance & Disaster Assistance • Commodity Futures • Miscellaneous: beginning farmer and socially disadvantaged farm resources • Trade and Tax Provisions

11. Farm Bill Spending

12. The “Normal” Farm Bill Process • USDA holds Farm Bill forums across the country • House and Senate Agriculture Committees hold Farm Bill hearings • USDA releases Farm Bill recommendations • CBO releases baseline spending estimates • Marker bills are introduced • Comprehensive bill is introduced • House and Senate Committees hearings  markup vote • Congress debates  vote

13. Marker Bills • Hundreds of specific bills are introduced to Congress starting approximately two years in advance of the Farm Bill • The intent of these bills is to get specific content incorporated in the ultimate Farm Bill • Support for specific market bills is often demonstrated through the number of co-sponsors

14. The 2012 Farm Bill Process • Momentarily fast tracked because of the Super Committee • Agriculture Committee leaders aimed to develop a Farm Bill that would reduce spending by $23 billion • This bill was to be included in the Super Committee’s budget reduction proposal • The Super Committee failed to reach compromise on plan to reduce spending ($1.2 trillion over ten years) • The fast track Farm Bill process was brought to an end

15. The 2012 Farm Bill Process • What we know about the fast tracked Farm Bill • $15 billion in cuts to commodity programs • $6 billion in cuts to conservation programs • $4 billion in cuts to SNAP • $2 billion freed for new programs and those that lacked secured budget baselines For more detail on the Farm Bill that wasn’t visit: http://sustainableagriculture.net/blog/2011-farm-bill

16. The 2012 Farm Bill Process: Moving Forward Option 1 • Congress will take up the Farm Bill in early 2012 • The 2012 Farm Bill will be passed in the summer, in advance of the elections Option 2 • Congress will seek a one-year extension of the Farm Bill and start the process from the beginning • The election will be over and new committee members will be in place • There will be more clarity of the budget and availability of funds

17. The 2012 Farm Bill Process: Moving Forward • Most advocacy organizations are working under the assumption that we will have a Farm Bill in 2012 (better safe than sorry) • The most likely changes to the Farm Bill include: • Elimination of direct payments • Consolidation of programs where possible to reduce costs

18. Two Marker Bills Local Farms, Food and Jobs Act (S. 1773, H.R. 3286) Beginning Farmer and Rancher Opportunity Act (S. 1850, H.R. 3236)

19. Local Farms, Food & Jobs Act Summary • Introduced by • Representative ChelliePingree (ME) • Senator Sherrod Brown (OH) • Goals • Provide support for those engaged in the development of local/regional food systems • Increase access to healthy products for consumers • Food system sectors addressed in the bill • Production • Aggregation • Processing • Marketing • Distribution

20. Local Farms, Food & Jobs Act Major provisions • Income and financial support for local/regional producers • Financial support to build local/regional food system infrastructure • Expand access to healthy local foods for consumers • Enhance research and extension services

21. Local Farms, Food and Jobs Act Highlights Income and financial support for local/regional producers • Expand Value-Added Producer Grant Program to food hubs and underserved states/communities • Create whole-farm revenue insurance product for specialty crop producers, livestock/mixed-grain farmers • Fund the National Organic Certification Cost Share Program at an annual amount of $7 million and raising the maximum cap per participants from $750 to $1,000

22. Local Farms, Food and Jobs Act Highlights Financial support to build local/regional food system infrastructure • Increase the Business and Industry Loan funding set-aside for local and regionally produced agriculture products and food enterprises • Local Marketing Promotion Program – formerly the Farmers Market Promotion Program plus funding for larger scale, non-direct local marketing – at $30 million per year

23. Local Farms, Food and Jobs Act Highlights Expand access to healthy local foods for consumers • Improve SNAP participant access to farmers markets, CSAs, and other direct marketing outlets by creating a level playing field for electronic benefit transfer among vendors • Allow schools the option to use a portion of their AMS school lunch commodity dollars or DoDFresh program dollars for the purchase of local and regional foods

24. Local Farms, Food and Jobs Act Highlights Enhance research and extension services • Direct USDA Research, Education, and Extension Office to coordinate classical plant and animal breeding research activities and projects to develop locally-adapted cultivars and breeds

25. Beginning Farmer & Rancher Opportunity ActSummary • Introduced by • Representative Eric Walz (MN-1) & Jeff Fortenberry (NE-1) • Senator Tom Harkin (IA) • Enhances federal programs to support economic opportunities for young and beginning farmers and ranchers • Strategic collaboration among many individuals and farmer advocacy organizations across the U.S.

26. Beginning Farmer Video

27. Beginning Farmer & Rancher Opportunity ActMajor provisions • Conservation • Credit • Rural development • Research, education and extension services • Crop insurance and risk management • Coordination provisions

28. Beginning Farmer and Rancher Opportunity ActHighlights EQIP and Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) Funding Set Aside • Raise the reservation for BFRs from 5 percent to 10 percent of the total EQIP funds and 10 percent of total CSP acres.  Also, give USDA authority to increase the rate at which technical assistance is provided when assisting BFRs. Farm and Ranchland Protection Program (FRPP) • Give discretionary authority to the eligible entities that implement the program to give priority to easements with an option to purchase at the agricultural use value, deals that transfer the land to beginning farmers and ranchers, applicants with farm succession plans, and other similar mechanisms to maintain the affordability of protected land.

29. Beginning Farmer and Rancher Opportunity ActHighlights Young Beginning Farmer and Rancher Microloan Program Create a new simplified loan category within direct operating loans to provide flexible capital through operating microloans for beginning farmers and ranchers from 19-35 years old who also receive borrower training.

30. Beginning Farmer and Rancher Opportunity ActHighlights Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program Reauthorize this highly successful flagship training program, increase mandatory funding from $75 million to $125 million over the next 5 years to help meet growing demand for the program, and include a new priority on agricultural rehabilitation and vocational training programs for military veterans.

31. Beginning Farmer and Rancher Opportunity ActHighlights Veterans Agricultural Liaison Create a new Veterans Agricultural Liaison Position at USDA charged with facilitating the process of educating returning veterans about and connecting them with BFR training and/or agriculture vocational and rehabilitation programs as well as ways to use veterans educational benefits for purposes relating to beginning a farming career.

32. How can YOU get involved? Call, email or leave a message for the co-sponsors of the two bills Recruit your Congressional delegation to co-sponsor each bill! Has your organization signed on to the support letter for each bill? Sign up for NSAC action alerts and Weekly Roundup

33. Call to Congress • Hello, I am a constituent and I am at the NOFA/ Mass conference with hundreds of other constituents who care about the Farm Bill. • I am calling to urge Senator/Congress(wo)man __________  to co-sponsor the Local Farms, Food, and Jobs Act and the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Opportunity Act. They are both job creators that will help boost farm income and meet consumer demand.  Can count on Senator/Congress(wo)man_________ to be a co-sponsor? • If Senator ______ wants to co-sponsor or wants more information please contact Senator Sherrod Brown’s office. • If Representative ______ wants to co-sponsor or wants more information please call Representative ChelliePingree’soffice.

34. Call to Congress

35. Questions?