Iowa Congresswoman Ashley Hinson says election year politics doomed passage of the Farm Bill in September. Hinson, a Republican from Marion, says the U.S. House should vote on its version of the bill when congress reconvenes November 12.
“I led the majority of the House Republican Conference, 139 of my colleagues, in a letter urging Republican House leadership to bring the Farm Bill up for a vote as soon as possible,” Hinson said this morning. “…I’m not afraid to stand up to my own party leadership to advocate for the needs of Iowa agriculture.”
Democrats say the bill that cleared the House Ag Committee in May is unacceptable because it includes a back door cut in federal food assistance. Democrats in the U.S. Senate have yet to release a text of their own version of the Farm Bill.
“Enough is enough here. I believe the Farm Bill would receive bipartisan support on the House floor from members who understand food just does not grow at the grocery store,” Hinson said.
The one-year extension of the 2018 Farm Bill expired Monday. As of yesterday, some USDA programs — like beginning farmer assistance — immediately shut down and farmland owners cannot enroll in conservation programs. If congress fails to act before December 31st, federal price supports for crops like wheat and corn will revert to Depression Era calculations. In some cases, potential payments would triple.
Hinson, who held a weekly conference call with Iowa reporters this morning, said President Biden should use his influence to bring an end to the union strike at ports along the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico, but Hinson is not calling on Biden to use his authority to force workers back on the job.
“He’s dancing around the issue and playing politics and I think this is a place where politics are completely unacceptable,” Hinson said. “…I’m hopeful that again President Biden will do the work of the commander-in-chief here to get resolution here as quickly as possible.”
Hinson said farmers in her congressional district tell her they’re worried about the impact on ag exports. The National Retail Federation and the National Association of Manufacturers have urged Biden to seek a court order that forces striking dock workers back on the job for 90 days, while negotiations continue. Hinson stopped short of joining that call.
“People need to come to a fair agreement, key word here is a ‘fair’ agreement,” Hinson said, “and I hope that both sides continue to negotiate in good faith and we get this resolved as quickly as possible.”
Biden has said he believes in collective bargaining and does not intend to invoke the 1947 law that would force the Longshoremen to return to the docks. The union that represents dockworkers is seeking a $5 an hour pay raise in each year of the six-year contract, as well as protections from automation that would eliminate jobs.