Conrad Details Strategy for National Ag Legislation

| 1/16/2012

In a series of addresses to North Dakota agriculture leaders today, Sen. Kent Conrad laid out a strategy for the development of a new Farm Bill. In remarks at both the Precision Agriculture Summit hosted by the Red River Valley Research Corridor and the North Dakota Farmers Union in Jamestown and NDSU`s Crop Insurance Conference, Conrad called the latest Farm Bill negotiations some of the most challenging and critical of his career.

Conrad expressed concern that opponents have downplayed the vital role production agriculture plays to the health of the nation and have been unfairly critical of federal farm programs. Conrad also stressed to ag leaders the importance of developing a new Farm Bill that is easily defensible to the broader public.

Conrad also unveiled plans to introduce future ag legislation. "The number one message that I`ve have heard from producers thus far is that we need to maintain a strong crop insurance program. The new program I`m proposing will compliment crop insurance, without duplicating or undermining it, by providing some protection from shallow losses that crop insurance typically does not cover."

Conrad was the co-author for the 2002 and 2008 Farm Bills. His new proposal combines ACRE and SURE into one streamlined program. He claims that this new program is designed to be easier to understand and administer than the current crop insurance program. It will also make payments in a much more timely manner.

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