Contact: Rob Ostrander 202.224.7627 Shana Stribling 202.224.0309
Monday, December 5, 2005

LAKE OZARK, MO – U.S. Senator Kit Bond today met with Missouri's agriculture leaders at the annual Missouri Farm Bureau meeting where he provided a legislative update on this year’s successes and unfinished business.

"The deliberative and democratic process you labor through in formulating policy positions and strategy is fundamental to your strength, credibility and effectiveness in Washington,” Bond said to Missouri’s agriculture leaders. “Believe me, with the extraordinary number of problems and opportunities and controversy that exists in these days, without your being fully engaged, we can be sure that no progress will be made in advancing your common sense agenda.”

Bond said this year there was good news -- after a long fight Congress passed a federal highway bill. As one of the bill’s authors, Bond was able to ensure that Missouri will receive $1.365 billion in new funds, more than $265 million per year for Missouri roads and bridges. Also, for the first time, Missouri will receive more in federal highway funds than paid to the federal government in gas taxes.

Also, significant progress has been made on efforts to modernize the Mississippi River Waterways, Bond told agriculture leaders. With an overwhelming bipartisan vote in the House to approve lock expansion and approval of the plan by the Senate Committee on which Bond serves, the Senator hopes to get his waterways modernization plan to the Senate floor early next year.

Another success this year is the new energy bill passed by Congress and signed into law by the President last summer. Bond said this bill is good news for the economy, both nationally and here in Missouri where Senator Talent’s Renewable Fuels Standard will boost the use of biodiesel and ethanol, but there is still more to be done to reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil.

Bond also discussed his work to limit the use of certain federal funds on projects where eminent domain is used. This year he included language in the Transportation Appropriations bill that would restrict the use of federal funds on private development projects that seek to use the power of eminent domain.

A long-time defender of Missouri’s rivers, Bond again reiterated his disapproval of the plan for the spring rise. Bond said the plan fails because the value to fish habitat is dubious while its risk to people is very real.