Stabenow: Commodity Title a Political Issue in Farm Bill Talks

Farm bill conference committee leaders are at odds over the commodity title.  Senator Debbie Stabenow claims House Ag Committee Chairman Mike Conaway has politicized the farm bill with a provision that would take “tens of millions” of dollars from Midwestern farmers for cotton growers in the South, according to the Hagstrom Report.

The 2014 farm bill expired last month, and lawmakers are expected to finish a farm bill following the November elections.  However, the elections appear to be muddying the waters of the farm bill process, at least, from Stabenow’s view.  She noted that cotton prices are up 20%, while all other commodity prices are down 50 percent, adding:

“We just can’t do a political play that rewrites the commodity title for southern farmers ‘just because.’ We have to have a farm safety net that works.” She remains optimistic the farm bill can be completed this year.

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