Mark, who is a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, supported passage of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, also known as the 2002 Farm Bill. Mark regards the Farm Bill as critical legislation aimed at helping farmers and rural America meet the modern challenges confronting agricultural producers.

Most provisions of the 2002 Farm Bill will expire in September of 2007. While Mark will no longer hold a seat in the U.S. Senate at that time, until his term expires in January of 2007, he will continue to use his seat on the Agriculture Committee to fight for Minnesota farmers’ priorities.

The 2002 Farm Bill includes a number of improvements for farmers and rural communities, including a new, countercyclical price-support program for dairy farmers. The Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) program is the first dairy program to provide fair benefits to dairy farmers across the country, unlike earlier compacts which pit farmers from different regions against each other. Since the inception of the MILC program, Minnesota dairy farmers have received $163.6 million in benefits, fourth in the nation after Wisconsin, New York and Pennsylvania.

The MILC program expired on September 30, 2005. The Budget Reconciliation bill (S. 1932) that passed Senate on December 21, 2005 includes a two-year extension of MILC, but with a 25 percent reduction in benefits. Final action on this legislation is expected early in 2006.

The Farm Bill also includes new conservation programs to encourage sound environmental practices; strengthened nutrition assistance; and a requirement that meat, fish, and produce be labeled with their country of origin. In addition, the Farm Bill includes an amendment authored by Mark to provide $5 million in grant money between fiscal years 2003 and 2007 to educate the public about the benefits of using biodiesel fuel.

Although the Farm Bill is an improvement over previous existing farm policy, some of the bill's best initiatives still have not been carried out. For example, an initiative to require government agencies to buy bio-based products, such as plastics, adhesives and lubricants made from plant-based materials, has not been fully implemented. Moreover, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has limited enrollment in the Conservation Security Program, which provides incentives to farmers for conservation efforts they make on working lands, to a handful of watersheds across the country.

Mark will continue to work in his capacity as a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee to see that the 2002 Farm Bill is implemented as Congress intended, and to ensure that Minnesota ’s agriculture priorities are reflected in the 2007 Farm Bill.