NEWS RELEASE
CONGRESSMAN BOB ETHERIDGE
NORTH CAROLINA

WASHINGTON - This evening, the U.S. House of Representatives approved the conference report for H.R. 4520, including a $10.1 billion tobacco buyout for North Carolina's farm families, by a vote of 280 to 141. With Congress scheduled to adjourn this week, the clock is now ticking for Senate passage of the bill. U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge (D-Lillington), a part-time tobacco farmer and a member of the House Agriculture Committee, voted in favor of the legislation.

"This legislation is not perfect, but with a 30 percent quota cut looming, it will make a tremendous difference in North Carolina. Almost four billion dollars will flow into rural North Carolina during the next 10 years. That money will jumpstart the economy, create jobs and opportunity and give many debt-ridden tobacco growers an honest chance to survive."

The version of the buyout in the conference report is a $10.1 billion buyout, translating into $7 for quota holders and $3 for growers based on 2002. However, the buyout is funded by tobacco companies and would therefore eliminate $3 billion in Phase II payments to farmers and allotment holders. A full summary of the buyout legislation included in the conference report is available on Etheridge's website at www.house.gov/etheridge.

Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee Bill Thomas added the buyout to H.R. 4520, a corporate tax bill, to gain the votes of Democratic lawmakers and ensure passage in the House.

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