Agriculture

Wisconsin has a long tradition of being a leader in agriculture. That tradition continues today as the state is one of the national leaders in milk production and value added dairy products such as cheese and butter. In addition, Wisconsin is a leader in specialty crops like cranberries, ginseng and many varieties of vegetables.

The 6th Congressional District has a strong agricultural presence, as evidenced by the more than 10,000 farms that operate within its borders. Congressman Petri recognizes the importance of agriculture to the local and national economy and has been a supporter of several programs that assist the Wisconsin agricultural community to maintain its vast diversity and production. One such program, the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC), compensates dairy producers when domestic milk prices fall below a specified level.

Farm Bill

Federal farm support, food assistance, agricultural trade, marketing, and rural development policies are governed by a variety of separate laws. These laws are periodically evaluated, revised, and renewed through an omnibus, multi-year "farm bill."

The farm bill was last reauthorized in 2008. The Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007, H.R. 2419, was the House-passed version of this bill. During House consideration in 2007, Rep. Petri voted in support of a number of amendments to reform the farm bill, but ultimately voted against the legislation. On June 18, 2008, President Bush vetoed the farm bill, but on the same day Congress voted to override the President's veto, so it became law.

Along with many other members of the House, Rep. Petri believed that the farm bill reauthorization did not implement necessary reforms in many important areas such as farm subsidies, conservation, and trade. The legislation failed to more fairly distribute federal program spending and benefits across a larger share of the U.S. farm community, distorted the rural economy and weakened our hand at the World Trade Organization by establishing new subsidies that would set back trade negotiations.

Dairy

Although Rep. Petri on balance couldn't support the overall farm bill, he was pleased with many of the dairy provisions included in the legislation. The farm bill extended the authority for the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) program until September 30, 2012, and retained the base target price at $16.94 per hundredweight (cwt). It makes significant changes to the MILC payment structure by increasing the payment rate to 45% of the price deficiency, which will result in a one-third larger payment to eligible farmers in months when a payment is triggered. Additionally, the farm bill increases the production payment limit from 2.4 million pounds to 2.985 million pounds of annual production (equivalent to about a 160-cow operation).

Statements on Agriculture