Agriculture
Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler discusses agriculture issues with a Missouri farmer
Views on Agriculture
I have always considered myself a farm girl and thank God every day for the opportunity to grow up in an environment where I learned the value of a hard day’s work. In addition to proudly serving you in Congress on the House Agriculture Committee, my husband and I still own and operate a farm near Harrisonville, where we raise cattle and grow corn, wheat, and soybeans. We also run a small business providing farm equipment and related services to farmers in western Missouri.
Since my arrival in Washington, I have introduced and advocated common-sense policies for Missouri's farm community. I co-sponsored the Preserving Family Farms Act, which passed the House on July 26, 2012. This legislation will prevent the Department of Labor from banning children under the age of eighteen from performing basic farm duties. The Department of Labor’s proposed rule on youth labor was misguided and clearly conceived by bureaucrats with no sense of the realities of life in rural America. This rule would have prevented the next generation of food producers from learning the critical skills needed to feed our country. By supporting the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act, the Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act, and Superfund Common Sense Act, I have fought to decrease regulations from the Environmental Protection Agency and other government bureaucracies that continue to hinder agriculture production and rural life.
Additionally, I introduced the Small Business Credit Availability Act, a bi-partisan bill that passed the House with overwhelming support in a vote of 312-11. This legislations helps small and rural businesses obtain loans, and it create jobs by revising the Dodd-Frank Act to provide smaller banks with relief from the burdensome regulations governing the banks’ ability to provide low-rate fixed loans. It also applies to credit unions, Farm Credit banks, the Rural Electric Cooperative infrastructure lender, and finance companies that offer credit to their customers. Many of these businesses are often overlooked by large national banks and might not have access to competitive loans. Although the Dodd-Frank Act was supposed to reduce the power of big banks, it has actually had the exact opposite effect and is hurting our small town banks. My bill helps to reverse this trend and keeps lending decisions closer to home. While the House passed this bill last year, the Senate did not take up this legislation so I will be championing this bill again in the new Congress.
I am currently sponsoring legislation to prevent implementation of a duplicative United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) catfish food inspection program. This act would save taxpayers $140 million over the next 10 years by leaving catfish inspection at the Food and Drug Administration. Furthermore, the bill would prevent a possible trade war with certain emerging markets that could have devastating effects on other agricultural commodities important to the state of Missouri.
After working with my colleagues and constituents for over three years, I was happy to see the 2014 Agriculture Act, a five year farm bill, passed and signed into law. I believe a strong farm bill is necessary to ensure America maintains the safest, most affordable food supply in the world. This is the most reform-minded farm bill in years and is a piece of legislation that is fair to both taxpayers and farmers alike. The new law contains straightforward reforms that provide a safety net for farmers while still cutting spending by over $23 billion. Traditional direct payment subsidies are eliminated and over 100 additional federal programs were consolidated or eliminated. Additionally, reforms were made to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse from the current system. These simple reforms will not keep a single calorie out of the mouths of hungry children or families who qualify for the program. Livestock disaster programs were also reinstated and funded retroactively to assist livestock producers during extreme weather conditions like we faced during the massive 2012 drought. While the 2014 Agriculture Act was not perfect, it will provide five years of certainty to our farmers and all those in rural America.
As long as I am in Washington, I will continue to work to craft common-sense farm policy that strikes a balance between protecting rural interests and advancing fiscal responsibility. A safe and abundant domestic food supply is vitally important to the overall strength of America, and I am committed to protecting the ability of all Missouri Fourth District farmers and ranchers to run their operations as they see fit.