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Texas Agriculture Archive

April 18, 2003

Crop disaster aid signup begins June 6

Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman has announced key sign-up dates for programs under the Agricultural Assistance Act of 2003, including the crop disaster assistance program. Veneman said that sign-up for the crop program, which will reimburse producers for qualifying crop losses in either 2001 or 2002, will begin June 6, with payments to begin shortly thereafter.

"The Department is committed to getting assistance into the hands of affected producers as soon as possible," Veneman said during a briefing with reporters from the USDA radio studios. "Our timetable is several weeks ahead of previous disaster aid packages, even though this is a more complicated bill to implement."

To expedite the process, Veneman said the department is working to cut regulatory red tape by going directly to final rules where possible and implementing many regulations through a single, expedited "mega regulation."

Crop disaster payments must be calculated using the same formula used for the 2000 crop year. This means crop losses for 2001 and 2002 will be valued using the price election for Actual Production History crop insurance policies, or if that price is not available, a 5-year average.

Crop disaster payments are also subject to a formula which states that the sum of (1) the value of the crop not lost, (2) the disaster payment, and (3) the crop-insurance indemnity cannot exceed 95 percent of what the crop's value would have been, if there had been no loss. Crop disaster payments will be reduced if the 95 percent limitation is exceeded. The value of the crop not lost and the 95 percent limitation will be valued at either the Actual Production History price election or the NASS season-average price, whichever is higher. Specific details will be available from local Farm Service Agency offices, USDA Service Centers and on the web at http://www.usda.gov.

Other key assistance program details include:

• Sign-up for the $50 million cottonseed program will begin after completion of the 2002 crop ginning season, which occurs around May 1;

• $60 million in disaster related assistance for the sugar beet industry, with sign-up beginning in June;

• $250 million for the Livestock Assistance Program that will reimburse producers for grazing losses will begin in July.

The Livestock Compensation Program (LCP) signup began April 1.

USTR lists trade barriers

A recently released Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) report demonstrates the cost of a wide range of barriers to imports of agricultural products from the United States and of piracy of U.S.-produced music, movies and software.

The annual report on foreign trade barriers lists what USTR views as unfair non-tariff barriers on agriculture imposed by the European Union (EU), Russia, China, Mexico, Australia, Japan, Taiwan and Venezuela.

For example, the report found that barriers in Russia contributed to a $500 million drop in U.S. poultry exports in 2002, while an EU moratorium on licensing biotechnology products since 1998 has led to lost U.S. export opportunities worth $200 million a year.

In addition, a "dramatic increase" in trade barriers to agriculture was reported for Mexico over the past year. USTR reiterated that the United States would not renegotiate market access issues in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) settled many years ago.

"Bringing down barriers to trade promotes growth and prosperity, for the United States and for the world," said U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick. "American workers, businesses and farmers expect a level playing field abroad. The Bush Administration is committed to identifying unfair barriers to U.S. exports and to working aggressively with our trading partners to eliminate those barriers."

COOL hearing set for Austin

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has joined together with the Texas Department of Agriculture for a listening and educational session on country-of-origin labeling (COOL) on Thursday, May 1, in Austin.

The session will be from 1-4 p.m. in Room 1-111 of the William B. Travis Building, 1701 N. Congress Ave. Bill Hawks, undersecretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs for USDA, will preside.

Last year's farm bill included a voluntary provision asking retailers to label certain agricultural commodities with a country-of-origin. This voluntary provision becomes mandatory Sept. 30, 2004. Covered commodities include fresh or frozen muscle cuts of beef, veal, lamb and pork; ground beef, lamb and pork; farm-raised and wild fish and shellfish; perishable agricultural commodities such as fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables; and peanuts.

Information about the COOL law and the upcoming session can be found at TDA's web site at www.agr.state.tx.us under "What's New" and at http://ams.usda.gov/cool1. Those wishing to speak at the listening session in Austin need only to appear at the session and sign in before they speak.

Written testimony may be submitted to TDA, P.O. Box 12847, Austin, TX 78711 or email the testimony to lisa.elledge@agr.state.tx.us.

Notable Quotables

"Renewable fuels like ethanol and biodiesel will improve air quality, strengthen national security, reduce the trade deficit, decrease dependence on Saddam Hussein for oil, and expand markets for agricultural products."

Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) following the recent markup of the Energy Tax Incentives Act of 2003 by the Senate Finance Committee.