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May 18, 2001

Imported cattle test BSE-negative

The National Veterinary Services Laboratory (NVSL) in Ames, Iowa, has reported there was no evidence of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in brain tissue collected from 16 German-imported cattle euthan-ized at Texas A&M University in early April.

The animals were imported from Germany to Texas in l996, before BSE was diagnosed in that country. In l997, BSE was detected in Belgium, and U.S. Department of Agriculture authorities determined that contaminated feed was being moved throughout the European Union, and the agency prohibited the importation of cattle and meat products from the EU.

As a safety precaution, the German-imported cattle in Texas had been restricted to their premises since March 1997. The animals were transported to Texas A&M University in early April, where a veterinary team, headed by USDA's Dr. Gary Svetlik, euthanized the animals and collected brain tissue for testing from each animal. The animals' carcasses were incinerated and did not enter the food chain.

One Texas producer imported four head of the German animals. He sold one animal for diagnostic purposes and agreed to sell another for testing in about 45 days, but does not want to sell the remaining two animals. The remaining animals are under restriction and surveillance by a USDA field veterinarian. The owner also is instructed to report any health problems so the animals can be re-examined immediately.

Chapter 12 bankruptcy extended

The Senate has approved a House-passed temporary extension of a federal bankruptcy provision designed to help farmers reorganize debt and stay in business. The measure (H.R. 256), which passed the Senate unanimously, would temporarily extend the expired Chapter 12 bankruptcy clause to May 31, 2001, and make it retroactive to its expiration date of June 30, 2000.

"Under the current economic circumstances in farm country, it is important to keep Chapter 12 in place to help those farmers who otherwise may face foreclosure," said Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa). "It (Chapter 12) gives family farmers room to recover from their economic crunch and still hold on to their livelihood."

The measure to make Chapter 12 bankruptcy permanent, supported by Farm Bureau, is included in the overall bankruptcy reform bill, which passed both the House and Senate. Lawmakers now must compromise on a single version of the bankruptcy reform bill to submit for the president's signature.

Energy policy:
Ethanol the answer?

The National Corn Growers' Association wants to see ethanol take a leading role in emerging national energy policy because it delivers energy security, promotes environmental stewardship and revitalizes rural communities, according to NCGA President Lynn Jensen in recent congressional testimony.

"Ethanol facilities are not only cost effective, they are energy efficient," Jensen said. "Last year, ethanol production set a new record, utilizing more than 600 million bushels of corn, or about 6.5 percent of the crop to produce 1.63 billion gallons of fuel ethanol. Corn demand created by ethanol kept valuable farmland resources in production, adding as much as $3 billion to the income of our corn farmers."

Citing research conducted by the Argonne National Laboratory, Jensen testified that ethanol produces 32 percent fewer emissions of greenhouse gasses than gasoline for the same distance traveled.

However, Jensen said, the viability of the ethanol industry hinges in large part on government policy. Jensen suggested a two-track approach to achieve both the development of a comprehensive energy strategy that includes a renewable fuels requirement complementing the current oxygen requirement in the reformulated gasoline program, and a comprehensive reauthorization of the Clean Air Act where new developments in fuel and vehicle technology "can be considered through the critical lens of analysis that our environmental policy demands."

The World Trade Organization has released a study bolstering the call for the launch of a new trade round. While the 1994 Uruguay Round contributed "significantly" to opening international markets, many market access obstacles still exist.

WTO Director-General Mike Moore said the study "makes clear that the WTO has plenty of unfinished business.

"The best way we can tackle the many remaining trade barriers that are preventing people and countries from realizing their full potential is in a wider set of negotiations."

Notable Quotables
"As any taxpayer knows, the tax code is excessively complex. Millions of Americans spend hours struggling over tax forms. They spend billions of dollars seeking professional help and buying do-it-yourself tax software. Taxpayers exhaust their patience and their resources simply trying to comply with the law. We believe Congress must make the tax code more simple and more fair for taxpayers at all income levels. The easy part is deciding to simplify taxes. The hard part is deciding how to do it. We intend for our hearing, and this study, to help jump-start the debate on tax simplification."

—Joint statement by Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), chairman of the Committee on Finance, and Max Baucus (D-Mont.), ranking Democrat, made following the Joint Committee on Taxation release of the executive summary of a much-anticipated, congressionally mandated study on tax simplification. Grassley scheduled a hearing recently to explore options for simplification.