SD Corn

Work on the next farm bill is underway on the floor of the U.S. Senate. But as debate begins, one of the main targets of extreme environmental groups and fiscal hawks will be the federal crop insurance program.

As we know, federal crop insurance is the most critical risk management component of any farm, ensuring that uncontrollable forces like weather won’t put farms likes yours out of business. No one knows what Mother Nature is going to do and the risk she brings to our industry.

Where would we be if not for the federal crop insurance program after facing one of the worst droughts in the last half century during 2012? This program is essential to the rural economy and preserves the production capacity of farmers. It not only provides farmers the certainty they need to plan ahead, but also to improve their operations through innovation.

The following amendments to strip away crop insurance have surfaced:

Begich-Flake Amendment

·         This amendment aims to provide transparency to federal crop insurance subsidies by disclosing information on crop insurance participants who receive benefits.

Durbin-Coburn Amendment

·         This amendment aims to reduce premium support for crop insurance participants with an Adjusted Gross Income (“AGI”) of over $750,000 by 15% for all policies beyond catastrophic coverage.

Flake Amendment (#1)

·         This amendment would prohibit premium subsidies on crop insurance policies with a Harvest Price Option (“HPO”).

Flake Amendment (#2)

·         This amendment would strike section 11011 which prohibits taxpayers from realizing budget savings upon renegotiation of Standard Reinsurance Agreement (“SRA”).

Shaheen-Toomey Amendment

·         This amendment would place a $50,000 cap on the amount of crop insurance premium subsidies a crop insurance participant can receive.

Please urge Senators John Thune and Tim Johnson to oppose these harmful amendments to the farm bill currently in debate on the Senate floor. These amendments will have an adverse impact on federal crop insurance, including adding AGI means testing, premium subsidy caps and disclosure of information on crop insurance participants. We need you to tell your senators to pass a clean farm bill that helps rural America.  Your call is very important to blocking these amendments and maintaining a strong crop insurance program.

To make your voice heard, contact your South Dakota Senators.

Senator Tim Johnson

DC: (202) 224-5842

Sioux Falls: (605) 332-8896

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Senator John Thune

DC: (202) 224-2321

Sioux Falls: (605) 334-9596

When you are connected tell them they need to reject harmful crop insurance amendments and pass a clean farm bill.

Keith Alverson and Bill Chase visit with Senator Tim Johnson.

Corn Congress gets underway this week as directors from both the South Dakota Corn Growers Association and Corn Utilization Council will be meeting in Washington, DC to speak with our nation’s leaders and meet with corn farmers from other states to address current policy matters and elect leadership for the 2013 National Corn Growers Association board.

“Corn Congress is all about representing the South Dakota corn farmer on a national stage by establishing policies and expressing the concerns that our growers share,” said SDCGA President Mark Gross, a farmer and rancher from Bridgewater. “Our biggest issue this year is making sure that the House passes a Farm Bill Now, giving our farmers the certainty they need to make long-term decisions moving forward.”

Other pressing issues include biotechnology, ethanol, the Renewable Fuels Standard and the drought, which has impacted a majority of the Corn Belt.

The group will be touching on those topics as it meets with Senators Tim Johnson, and John Thune and Representative Kristi Noem this week.

“Our organizations (SDCGA & SDCUC) are truly fortunate to be so well represented during Corn Congress,” said Gross. “Our delegates take pride in representing the state’s farmers and appreciate the opportunity to spend time talking about their concerns directly with members of Congress.”

Representing the South Corn Growers this week are: Mark Gross, president; Keith Alverson, vice-president; Kurt Stiefvater, secretary/treasurer; Jim Burg; and Kevin Deiter.

Representing South Dakota Corn Council are: Chad Blindauer, president; Justin Davis; and Bill Chase.

An ethanol deal has been reached between a bipartisan group of United States Senators in which they have agreed to end the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit as of July 31, 2011. The compromise will shift the funds saved from ending the tax credit towards federal deficit reduction, blender pump infrastructure and advanced biofuel tax credits.

The deal stems from Senators John Thune and Amy Klobuchar’s Ethanol Reform and Deficit Reduction Act and will put $1.3 billion towards the federal deficit and $668 million towards ethanol blender pump infrastructure.

 “After productive discussions with industry stakeholders over the past several weeks, we have reached a bipartisan solution that reduces the federal deficit and modifies current biofuels policy without pulling the rug out from under American renewable energy producers,” said Thune. “Domestic biofuels production in South Dakota and throughout the country continues to play an important role in reducing our nation’s dependence on foreign oil and creating American jobs. I look forward to moving our bipartisan plan through both the Senate and the House of Representatives.”

 Senator Thune has been a longtime supporter of ethanol and his efforts do not go unnoticed with his work in shaping the industry’s future.

 “I thank Senator Thune for his work in crafting a bipartisan path forward for the ethanol industry,” said Lisa Richardson, Executive Director of South Dakota Corn Growers Association. “Senator Thune continues to fight for rural America. With the significant budgetary challenges facing our country, it is important that the ethanol industry in South Dakota has common-sense policies in place to keep the biofuels industry moving forward. The enhanced blender pump tax credit will help give access to the market place, and the extended small producer tax credit will help our farmer-owned plants compete against foreign oil imports. We appreciate the work of Senator Thune and thank him for his continued support of agriculture producers in South Dakota.”

On Thursday, June 30, 2011, the United States Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency revised its prevented planting policy for farmers in parts of the prairie pothole region due to flooding.

United States Senator John Thune of South Dakota led the charge for his home state as his request for a change in federal prevented planting policy was approved. The change in policy would extend the preventive planting rule from three to four years making most producers eligible again in 2012 in case another round of flooding occurs. 

“After enduring another extremely wet spring planting season, producers in Northeastern South Dakota have not been able to plant tens of thousands of acres to corn, soybeans and other crops for the third consecutive year,” said Thune. “I applaud RMA’s modifying this policy change from what was originally proposed to ensure that producers in this region will be eligible for another year of crop insurance prevented planting assistance on otherwise ineligible acreage in 2012.

For a little history on this matter, in 2010, RMA proposed to change its policy on prevented planting eligibility due to parcels that were consistently enrolled year after year. A three-year window was announced to give farmers an opportunity to produce a quality crop in order to remain eligible for prevented planting in case of a natural disaster like flooding. Thune’s request came after South Dakota and other neighboring states experienced continued unusual weather patterns that have been disrupting the plantings of otherwise quality farm land. This additional year of coverage would qualify 250,000 additional acres in Northeastern South Dakota next year alone, providing much needed relief.   

“We appreciate Senator Thune pressuring USDA and RMA to consider using 2008 planted acres when determining eligibility for prevented planting in the 2012 crop year,” said Lisa Richardson, executive director of South Dakota Corn Growers Association. “Prevented planting coverage is critical to keeping many farming operations with spring-planted crops in Eastern South Dakota in business when they are unable to plant and harvest a crop.”

While most politicians lived up to their negative stereotypes yesterday in the Senate with the unconstitutional vote on an amendment to stop renewable fuel incentives, the time is now for our policy-makers to step up to the plate and vote on real ethanol reform.

With yesterday’s overwhelming vote, one has to wonder if they really understand the circumstances behind those votes. As many of those same voters tout fiscal responsibility and refusal to raise taxes, their vote would actually raise fuel prices and gas taxes on consumers. This is the very same Senate who agreed to keep giving subsidies to oil companies producing record profits while sending our country into another recession and our money overseas.

“The McCain’s and Coburn’s love to talk about ethanol standing on its own two feet, but they don’t seem to have a problem giving taxpayer dollars to dirty old oil,” said Lisa Richardson, Executive Director of the South Dakota Corn Growers Association. “American renewable fuels have come a long way in the last ten years but need a level playing field in order to compete with petroleum in the market place.”

Enough with political games, it’s time for our Senators to get serious about the Thune-Klobuchar bill, which brings much needed reform to the ethanol industry and reduces our national deficit. This fiscally responsible and common sense bill would stop VEETC on July 1, 2011 just like Coburn’s Amendment, and with the money saved it would invest in blender pump infrastructure and reduce our countries debt by $1 billion.

The United States Senate stood up for America’s renewable fuels industry today as they voted against Oklahoma Senator, Tom Coburn’s anti-ethanol amendment with a vote of 59-40. The proposed amendment would have taken away the young industry’s incentives including VEETC (the blender’s credit) and the tariff on imported ethanol.

The Amendment would also have raised both gas prices and gas taxes on consumers making it even more painful at the pump with gas prices near $4/gallon. Along with raising prices, the amendment would also take a step backwards in America’s progress on energy independence.

“Domestically produced ethanol supports good-paying American jobs, keeps gas prices down and also keeps that money right here in the USA while lessening the amount we spend on foreign oil,” said South Dakota Corn Growers Association President, Gary Duffy of Oldham, SD.  “I am proud to have South Dakota Senators, John Thune and Tim Johnson representing our state and standing up against Coburn’s Anti-Ethanol Amendment.”

The vote to keep domestic renewable fuel incentives in place is a victory for consumers, farmers and rural America today, however the fight is not over as more ethanol votes will be coming up in the weeks to follow.