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Senate Democrats offer to cut farm subsidies instead of meat inspectors
Story Date: 2/15/2013
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Source: Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE, 2/15/13
Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) said a Senate Democratic leadership proposal to eliminate direct payment subsidies to farmers would save $27.5 billion, constituting the entire non-defense discretionary cuts needed as part of a larger sequestration package intended to avoid across-the-board spending cuts March 1.
During a conference call with reporters, Stabenow said eliminating direct payments to farmers would take off the table all other non-defense cuts that would otherwise go into effect March 1.
The move would save USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service from being forced to shut down operations for as long as 15 days, forcing federally inspected processors to close while FSIS inspectors were idled. The White House estimated about $10 billion in losses for the more than 6,200 affected plants if that happened.
“The choice facing Congress is to allow drastically irresponsible cuts to hit every part of our budget and cost 750,000 jobs, or to make smart, targeted cuts. Billions in direct payment subsidies are paid out even in good times and for crops farmers aren’t even growing,” said Stabenow.
Stabenow acknowledged on the call that this proposal is so far backed by Senate Democrats and that she would be “reaching out to” Republican members of the Senate Agriculture Committee for backing. She noted, however, bi-partisan agreement on cutting direct payments was already reached once before, as part of the Senate farm bill last year that expired when the House failed to pass similar legislation.
Even as legislators attempt to move such proposals through the Senate and House before the March 1 deadline, action must wait for Congress to return from the President’s Day recess next week.
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