Sequestration challenges food safety, USDA services

02/14/2013 04:26:00 PM
Tom Karst

“Any kind of reduction in the inspection standards would be a critical concern for the industry,” he said. Gilmer said Feb. 14.

Gilmer said the farm bill is on the back burner as Congress deals with budgetary issues.

“Lawmakers want to know the resources at their disposal before they authorize a new bill,” he said.

As it stands now, Hoefner said sequestration will cut about $7 billion out the farm bill over 10 years, entirely from the commodity and conservation programs. Crop insurance won’t be hurt by the cuts, the Obama administration has indicated.

The budget crisis could put the possibility of passing a five-year farm bill in doubt this year, with the farm bill extended on a year-to-year basis instead.

“This could be one small step at a time, and I think the one small step at a time during a period of deficit reduction will be one slice and dice at a time,” Hoefner said.

“With the extension scenarios, you are essentially losing money with every extension,” said Kam Quarles, director of legislative affairs for the Washington, D.C.-based McDermott Will & Emery law firm. “It is vastly preferable to create a five year contract with American agriculture through a completed bill.”

Comments (8) Leave a comment 

Please, some one explain to me why it will be terrible for our country to start spending within it's means. Please. From my understanding, even with the sequestration, we'll still be running a deficit. So, we'll either need to raise taxes even more or reduce spending. Am I correct?

USDA has the flexibility to provide essential services with the right management
decisions. The Administration is putting forth the potential negatives to bolster the case
for getting the budget impasse resolved which is to be expected. However, this level of
lower spending levels can be absorbed with prudent management.

Unfortunately the President and the Republicans are playing a game of "chicken", and everyone knows that chicken can be one of the most unsafe foods (and games to play!) Sticking to principles is commendable, but sticking to them at the expense of common sense is quite another! You have to love our politicians!

Even easier, welfare abroad...foreign aid.

Cutting welfare will bring a porportional increase in robbery, methinks. The increase in robbery will increase the police and jail costs. It's never ending circle of financial ruin continues unabated. Welfare is a thinking problem, not a money problem. We all need to change the way we think about the unfortunate.

This is just political extortion by the president. To hear him warn against an 85 billion
cut to a 3.5 trillion budget, you'd think that the whole country's survival depended on this
infinitesimal reduction.

All this is garbage is just that. This is 2% of our budget. My payroll taxes went up 2% and I lost that money and I am surviing. Not happy but surviving. If 2% of a budget cut affects this many people it is a lie. If they are they are targeted for political purposes. Why doesn't obama take it out on his and her staff and other federal employees sitting doing nothing in DC. Let it come, and quit blaming republicans for the cuts. this was Obama and the dems idea to staret with, if it were important they should ahve been doing something a year and a half ago. They wait until the last minute and blame others. Put the blame back where it stands, Obama and his inability to keep spending money we don have and neither will our grandkids. Welcome to the american socialist republic!