News from Washington, D.C. that Senate leaders would delay action on the controversial climate change bill until at least next spring was welcomed by farmers all across America.

"This move offers a great opportunity for lawmakers to go back to the drawing board and reassess the need for this legislation and the impact it will have on all Americans," said American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) President Bob Stallman, a rice and cattle producer from Colorado County.

"The timing for this announcement by Senate leaders could not be better," he said. "We now know there will be no international agreement resulting from the upcoming meeting in Copenhagen. Furthermore, they would have no significant impact on the global climate. These bills represent all pain and no gain for our nation and American agriculture and now the Senate has a chance to correct that error."

There’s no doubt that farmers and ranchers would face some serious impacts by a climate change bill, said Texas Farm Bureau Legislative Director Steve Pringle.

"The outcome will unquestionably have an enormous impact on U.S. agriculture," Pringle said. "Analysis from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) shows that energy prices would rise. Fertilizer costs and electricity rates would jump as well. And while U.S. farmers and ranchers are trying to absorb these huge costs and regulations, foreign competitors will not face the same restrictions. Rushing to make a decision of this magnitude without having all the facts and information for an informed decision is bad policy."

Plus, with few energy alternatives defined in the legislation, Stallman said the bill would likely lead to energy deficits.

"The cap-and-trade provisions would do little more than downsize American agriculture and our ability to produce food in this nation," Stallman said. "None of those are acceptable results to us, and we will continue to tell our members of Congress, ‘Don’t cap our future.’ "

Farm Bureau is asking its members to continue to oppose the cap-and-trade proposals. Online action alerts can be found on the Texas Farm Bureau webpage under the "Legislative" banner.

With legislation on health care, overhauling financial markets and job creation to be considered, Senate leaders have much to accomplish before they take up a measure to cap emissions of carbon dioxide and other gases linked to climate change.

Texas Farm Bureau and AGFUND President Kenneth Dierschke recently lauded Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, for her commitment to remain in Washington as these issues are weighed.

"Important issues on the national stage such as health care and cap-and-trade legislation demand the experience and attention of our senior senator," Dierschke said. "The interests of Texans must continue to be represented in these important debates. We fully support her decision.

"Putting the needs of Texans before the demands of her campaign for governor shows a commitment to do what is best for the Lone Star State," he added. "This kind of sacrifice is rare in today’s cutthroat political world. This strong dedication to do what is right for Texas is a reason she received the support of Texas Farm Bureau AGFUND."

AGFUND is Texas Farm Bureau’s political action fund. It is a legal entity separate from the Texas Farm Bureau and may endorse and contribute financially to political candidates.

The climate bill delay side tracks one of President Barack Obama’s top domestic priorities, a move he hoped to have accomplished before world leaders meet in Copenhagen, Denmark Dec. 7-14 to discuss worldwide clean air pacts with other nations.

Obama contends that establishment of policies to curb greenhouse gases will ultimately spur investment in cleaner technologies and create more jobs.

The president acknowledged in mid-November, however, that time had run out to secure a legally binding climate deal with the nearly 200 countries who will be attending the Copenhagen meeting.

Said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), once a supporter of climate change legislation but who recently backed away from such proposals citing disagreements with the treatment of nuclear energy, the delay was "just a matter of reality."

The House passed its version of the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (HR 2454) on June 26, 2009. That bill, according to a recent study by Texas A&M’s Agricultural and Food Policy Center, would disproportionately raise energy prices for many residents and businesses, particularly those in the agricultural sector.

A second study released in early November by the University of Tennessee’s ag policy analysis center, showed a much less intrusive consequence for agriculture, provided Congress used a "properly constructed cap-and-trade program."