As part of its debate on the 103 amendments to the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013, the House of Representatives concluded consideration of an amendment offered by Representative Bob Gibbs of Ohio that would set target prices for all crops at 55 percent of the five year rolling Olympic average. After the amendment was offered, House Agriculture Committee Chair Frank Lucas of Oklahoma requested that Rep. Gibbs withdraw his amendment with the promise that he will work with Rep. Gibbs in the conference committee to see enacted an “equitable and market-oriented farm bill”. Leaders from the American Soybean Association, National Corn Growers Association, National Sunflower Association and U.S. Canola Association released the following statement on the withdrawal of the Gibbs Amendment:
“Our collective groups believe the Gibbs amendment would have received strong support on the House floor, and would have made the 2013 farm bill a better piece of legislation overall. As proponents of market-oriented farm policy, we are disappointed to see the amendment withdrawn and we thank Rep. Gibbs for his continued advocacy. We expect Chairman Lucas to respond to the farm policy concerns raised by the amendment during Conference on the farm bill, as he committed to do during his colloquy today with Rep. Gibbs. The final farm bill must be more equitable and market-oriented than the current Price Loss Coverage program in the House bill.”
source: ASA