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| April 28, 2006 | ||
In this Issue
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Congress returned this week from a two-week recess. Over the next five weeks, the House and Senate will be focusing on a number of issues including the emergency supplemental appropriations bill, immigration and energy costs. In addition, the House Appropriations Committee is expected to begin mark-up of the FY2007 appropriations bills, starting with agriculture appropriations on May 9. Both the House and Senate are scheduled to leave for a one-week Memorial Day recess on May 26.
Action on Energy Costs Takes Over CongressA bipartisan push to haul petroleum companies before various House and Senate hearings on gasoline price gouging, move to rebate or temporarily suspend federal gasoline taxes and a White House plan to control gas prices took over Congress this week. While partisan fingerpointing was evident, the outlook for various legislative actions is sketchy. President Bush ordered the FTC to work with the Department of Justice to complete a congressionally mandated investigation into energy/gasoline costs, called for tax breaks for hybrid vehicles, ended temporarily deposits to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) and pushed for investment in alternative fuels. Senator Meets with Bush on Immigration BillKey Senators in the immigration bill battle met with President Bush at the White House Tuesday and expressed optimism for a Senate immigration bill. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) and Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) said they are determined to work together to pass the legislation. Frist said the bill would be back on the floor "in the very near future,” while Reid hopes to complete it by the Memorial Day recess. "I think Sen. Frist and I have to work out a way to handle the procedural quagmire that the Senate is," Reid said. "We're going to try to do that.” Frist said following discussions with Reid and consultations with their caucuses, the legislation will be brought back to the floor and "we will have appropriate procedure with debate and amendment and ... we will pass a bill." Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) said, "After
this meeting, I'm convinced that we will pass immigration reform this
year." "There's
no doubt that when [Bush] talks about a comprehensive bill, when he talks
about guestworkers, talks about -- not automatic citizenship, but the
path to citizenship -- that he's not talking about the House bill, that
he's talking about the ... ingredients of the Senate bill," he said Senator’s Question NASA Budget Cutbacks in Science ProgramThis week Senators expressed concern over NASA’s dwindling science budget and the possible gap in space travel between the final flight of the space shuttle in 2010 and takeoff of the agency's Crew Launch Vehicle (CLV). Appearing this week before both the Senate Commerce, Science & Space subcommittee and the Senate Appropriations Science subcommittee, NASA Administrator Michael Griffin did not deny sacrifices have to be made under the current NASA budget structure. "In the President's budget we believe we have struck a good balance between the demands and the needs of science programs and the human space flight programs and aeronautics,” Griffin said. “There are science programs that we are having to defer that we would like to do sooner. There are some smaller programs that we would just outright cut. But by and large in the administration we believe we have captured the essence of the NASA science program without damage. And that as the CLV is being delayed bit, so to it is fair to ask that some of the science programs be delayed a bit in order that everybody bears some of the consequences for hard choices, but no body bears them all." Commerce, Science & Space subcommittee Chair Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) and subcommittee ranking member Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) were critical of these cuts in the science program. In his written testimony, Griffin said, “Site specific earmarks
to institutions outside of NASA exacerbate the problems of NASA’s ‘uncovered
capacity’ workforce, where NASA civil servant scientists and engineers
do not have funds for their own research and development projects … NASA
seeks the assistance of this Committee and Congress in reducing earmarks
in the FY 2007 budget process.” House to Hear Animal Enterprise Terrorism ActThe House Judiciary Committee is expected to hold a hearing in June on the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA). Introduced in November, 2005 in the Senate by Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), chairman of the Senate Environment & Public Works Committee, and by Rep. Thomas Petri (R-WI) in the House, both bills aim to strengthen current law (18 USC § 43). The new legislation would strengthen legal authority
for law enforcement to prosecute individuals involved in campaigns targeting
animal research
enterprises, agriculture and third-party targets. They would specifically
do the following: Supplemental Spending Bill To Have Ag Disaster MoneyWhile it may drive the budget conservatives crazy, Congress will likely include a sizeable chunk of money in its FY2006 supplemental spending package to further aid farmers hit by natural disasters. The Senate included a $3.9-billion ag disaster spending package, pushed by Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT), and House ag leaders say disaster spending will be included in their package, though likely not at the same level. The Senate is expected to pass its bill next week. USDA and the White House told congressional leaders this week USDA has spent more than $4.5 billion in grants and loans to disaster victims, and has another $405 million pending. Further, they said, farm income this year is projected to be well above the last two years despite higher energy costs. Ag groups, including the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) and the National Farmers Union (NFU), support the disaster spending and sent Senate leaders a letter this week asking them to fight to keep the money in the Senate package. They said previous assistance to farmers in the Gulf Coast area was not available to farmers, and other farmers hit by non-hurricane disasters are also in need. The package contains aid for crops, livestock, sugar, timber, fruit, vegetable, cotton and nursery producers. Last year’s effort to dole out about $1.6 billion failed when conservative House members blocked its inclusion in the FY2006 spending bill. In 2004, $3 billion was forwarded to farmers and paid for by cutting the Conservation Security Reserve (CSR). This year’s effort will be more difficult to offset, said House Agriculture Committee Chair Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), who favors Gulf Coast aid, as well as help to midwestern and mountain state farmers hit by drought. USDA: BSE Risk “Extraordinarily Low” Based on Surveillance; Analysis in Peer Review, But Info is “Positive” to Reluctant BuyersThe estimate of BSE prevalence in the U.S. is four to seven cases within a herd of 42 million adult cattle, or about one case for every ten million cattle in the U.S., USDA said Friday morning during a press briefing by Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns, resulting in a BSE risk in the U.S. that is “extraordinarily low.” Johanns said this information would be “positive” to nations such as Japan. Johanns explained the outcome of USDA’s enhanced surveillance and testing system, a program that to date has tested more than 670,000 high risk animals, along with 20,000 otherwise healthy animals. The analysis of the testing data is currently under peer review and the review should be completed by the end of May when USDA will publish a report. As to the future of the testing program, Dr. Ron DeHaven, administrator of APHIS, said his agency is now determining at what level testing should remain to be “scientifically and statistically valid,” while meeting international standards. His “ballpark estimate” is somewhere in the neighborhood of 40,000 high risk animals a year would be tested as part of Type B or “maintenance” testing under OIE recommendations for BSE minimal risk countries. USDA’s enhanced surveillance program has cost the government a little over $1 million per week since it began over a year ago, DeHaven estimated. South Korea to Resume U.S. Beef ImportsA plan hammered out between the U.S. and South Korea on that Asian nation’s resumption of beef trade will be implemented, said Korean officials this week after a South Korean team of experts confirmed the U.S.’s most recent case of BSE was in an animal at least eight years old, meaning it was born before the U.S. ruminant feed ban. South Korea expects it will take about two weeks for its inspection team to review U.S. slaughter and packing plants, and it is likely beef shipments will resume in mid-May. Canada Locates 19 Herd Mates of BSE Cow, Begins TestingThe Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) this week said it located 19 herd mates of the British Columbia cow that tested positive for BSE earlier this month and it will begin testing the animals within days. The animals are believed to have consumed the same feed as the affected animal while on their birth farm, and while all herd “cohorts” found will be tested, no further BSE cases are expected based on international experience. Farm Bureau Pushing Ag Exclusion From EPA Air StandardsThe American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) “strongly supports” an EPA proposal AFBF says will exclude agriculture from new agency air quality standards on dust particles. EPA, in a February advanced notice of proposed rulemaking on its PM10 and PM2.5 standard, said it is considering ceasing monitoring in rural areas, saying the exclusion is designed “to make clear that there is no need or basis to control these sources to obtain public health benefits.” Comments are due to EPA on its proposal by July 10, 2006. The notice can be found at www.epa.gov/air/particlepollution/pdfs/anpr20060209.pdf. EPA Completes Second Round of Air Compliance AgreementsEPA announced it’s completed its review and approved the second batch of animal feeding operation (AFO) compliance agreements. Just over 700 agreements were approved, with about 2,700 AFO’s signed up to participate representing over 6,700 farms in 42 states. Russia Bans All Poultry Imports, Catches U.S. By SurpriseRussia abruptly ended all poultry imports this week, an action that caught U.S. officials and industry by surprise. The Russian government said the move was due to violations of import regulations, but said a new system would be in place within two weeks. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns, during a press briefing on USDA BSE testing, said he and U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman urged their Russian counterparts to lift the ban, but added poultry on ships by a date certain would be allowed into the country. The Russian market represents 30% of U.S. poultry sold overseas. Committee Kills Cargo Screening AmendmentAn amendment to a pending House port security bill that would have required 100% of all U.S.-bound cargo containers to be inspected at foreign ports was killed this week on an 18-16 vote in the House Homeland Security Committee. Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) authored the amendment that would have required all foreign ports to screen U.S.-bound cargo within three years. Opponents said it was not technically feasible and would be cost prohibitive to U.S. companies. Markey said his amendment was identical to one approved by the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee last month, and he would bring it to the House floor. The amendment is opposed by industry groups. Portman Heads to Geneva; EU “Welcomes” U.S. Willingness to Increase Subsidy CutU.S. Special Trade Representative Rob Portman will head to Geneva next week in hopes of pumping life into withering international agriculture trade talks. While he told a group of Senators this week the U.S. has not ruled out upping its offer on subsidy cuts if the European Union (EU) and developing nations do likewise, his bottom line was: “We’re still waiting.” EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said the U.S. offer to enhance its subsidy cuts “is an important advance” and he would “test this willingness” in the near future. British Prime Minister Tony Blair told Parliament, “If there is willingness on behalf of others to put a bolder offer on the table, we in Europe should be prepared to go back and revisit our policy.” Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA), chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, said Mandelson “misinterpreted” Portman’s remark, calling the existing EU offer “meager.” He said Mandelson’s public statements “do not help move the negotiations forward, but only seek to shift blame.” The EU has offered tariff and subsidy cuts of about 39%, while the U.S. offer is over 60%. Burr to Introduce National Uniformity Bill; Industry Takes on CriticsSen. Richard Burr (R-NC) said he will introduce before August a bill to allow FDA rules to preempt state food safety warning labels in order to bring uniformity to the national food warning labeling system. Burr introduced similar legislation when he was a House member. The bill, passed by the House, is drawing intense opposition in the Senate from several governors, state attorneys general and state regulators. Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) were joined last week by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in denouncing the bill, saying it would overturn the will of the voters of California, home of Prop. 65, a law requiring labeling and warnings on any food product that may contain carcinogens. Opponents said enactment of the legislation will preempt 200 existing state laws, but the Grocery Manufacturers of America (GMA) said this week in a press conference that laws in only 11 states would be affected. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) which compiled the total of 200 affected laws, included notifications, not just warnings, in its computation. GMA says CSPI’s number is bogus. Food Products, Grocery Manufacturers Agree in Principle to MergeThe leadership teams of the Food Products Assn. (FPA) and the Grocery Manufacturers of America (GMA) agreed in principle to merge effective Jan. 1, 2007, the groups jointly announced April 28. While the FPA board has approved the action, the merger won’t be finalized until GMA’s board meets in June, and the agreement is ratified by both group’s memberships. Former House member Cal Dooley, FPA president and CEO, was chosen by a search committee to head the merged entity if all goes according to plan. The new group will be called GMA/FPA for the first year, and GMA thereafter. Current GMA President C. Manly Molpus will continue to serve as president and CEO of GMA until he retires on Dec. 31, 2006. If approved, the merged organization will have nearly 300 member companies from every sector of the food, beverage and consumer products industry.
New BillsA number of new bills have been introduced. Click here to send a request for a copy of the text or more information about the bill. S.RES.446 S.2614 S.2680 S.2668 H.RES.785 H.R.5170 H.R.5229 H.R.5251 Inside Track is produced as a service to
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