For Immediate Release – January 2, 2013
Congress
Sidelines Specialty Crop Funding in Tax Legislation
Tax
measure extends 2008 Farm Bill, but excludes key specialty crop programs
WASHINGTON, DC – The passage of a fiscal
package late Tuesday evening excluded key specialty crop priorities. While the
bill does avert the dreaded “fiscal cliff,” efforts to roll a new five-year
Farm Bill into the bill were rejected in favor of a nine month extension of the
2008 law. The extension does not include funding for certain expiring programs
such as the Specialty Crop Research Initiative and Clean Plant Network.
“It’s disappointing, to say the least,” said Mike
Stuart, Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association president and Alliance
Co-Chair. “We had worked very hard with key members in the House and Senate to
craft a Farm Bill that was fiscally responsible and gave producers resources,
such as research funding for pest and disease programs, that they need to
remain competitive and to ensure a safe, healthful supply of fruits and
vegetables.”
The tax package bill was passed by a vote of
89-8 in the Senate, and was approved in the House with a vote of 257-167.
The Farm Bill will need to be redrafted in
the coming months and reconsidered by both chambers before the September 30,
2013 deadline. The Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance will continue to
communicate the importance of specialty crop programs to lawmakers on Capitol
Hill as this process moves forward in the 113th Congress.
“While we are frustrated, we look forward to
working with both committees and the dozens of members of Congress who helped
complete the 2012 Farm Bill,” said John Keeling, National Potato Council
executive vice president and CEO, and Alliance Co-Chair. “As has been the case
for more than a decade, we will be working to ensure that innovative
investments for the 50 percent of American agriculture represented by specialty
crops are fairly accounted for in the Farm Bill.”
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The Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance is a
national coalition of more than 120 organizations representing growers of
fruits, vegetables, dried fruit, tree nuts, nursery plants and other products.
The alliance was established to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crop
agriculture and improve the health of Americans by broadening the scope of U.S. agricultural public policy. For more
information, visit www.strongeragriculture.org.
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