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California Farmers Could Reap $185 Million in U.S. House Showdown on Subsidy Reform
House Vote Next Week Pits Status Quo Vs. Fairness & Conservation
WASHINGTON, Sept. 28 - Most California counties would get at least a $1 million boost in federal farm aid under a plan that would distribute crop subsidies more fairly while helping farmers protect the environment, according to an Environmental Working Group analysis of U.S. Department of Agriculture data.
EWG found that total federal farm aid would likely increase in 47 of the state's 58 counties under the reform plan. Statewide, total federal farm aid would increase by almost 12 percent. (See a county-by-county table)
All counties would receive more for programs that pay farmers to not sell their land to developers, maintain wetlands and wildlife habitat, and reduce pesticide runoff. But 35 counties would get at least $1 million more for conservation over the next five years, and statewide conservation funding would increase by more than $185 million.
More than $170 billion will be on the table next week when the House votes on the farm bill (HR 2646). The showdown will be between a status-quo proposal that continues to give a grossly disproportionate share of subsidies to wealthy growers of a few major commodities, and an amendment that grants a fair share to family farms and the growers of smaller speciality crops. The reform amendment would also shift billions from subsidies to conservation funding.
"Right now, most federal aid is going to large agribusiness corporations and absentee owners - not struggling family farmers," said Bill Walker, California director of EWG, which is working to increase conservation spending in the farm bill. "The reform plan will bring greater fairness to farm policy."
An Associated Press analysis of USDA records found that although California is the nattion's leading farm state, it ranks only 12th as a recipient of federal farm aid. California farmers received $812 million of the $27 billion doled out to U.S. farms last year. By comparison, Iowa, which produces less than half of California's agricultural bounty, received $2.7 billion.
