Farming Issues – Ethanol Subsidy, Next Generation, Farm Payments

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The following articles are recommend reading on farming issues including information on the future of the ethanol subsidy, next generation farmers, continuation of farm subsidy payments. Each article includes an excerpt, but if you would like to read the full article, simply click on the title.

Senate Attacks Ethanol Subsidy By Cheryl Hogue – Chemical and Engineering News

EXCERPT: Recent maneuvers in the Senate indicate a strong bipartisan desire to end ethanol subsidies—but how, exactly, that will happen remains unclear. The Senate voted June 16 to jettison the 45 cents-per-gallon federal subsidy on ethanol. The move, if enacted, would eliminate tax credits worth $6 billion a year that refiners get for blending ethanol with gasoline. It would also abolish a 54-cents-per-gallon tariff on imports of ethanol… “As the underlying bill to which this amendment is attached is unlikely to make it to the president’s desk, this vote was a freebie with no real consequences,” the Renewable Fuels Association said in a statement.

Farming for Another Generation – By Traci Bruckner, Center for Rural Affairs (Published by the WaynePost.com)

EXCERPT: Beginning farmers and ranchers face significant challenges, including access to land and capital (thanks to rapidly increasing land values and cash rents). They also face barriers in accessing federal programs designed to assist them with getting started. Despite these hurdles, there is no shortage of people who wish to farm or ranch. While there are challenges, there are also great opportunities — the local food movement, alternative livestock production and the growth in organics, to name a few.

Republicans Dodge Farm Subsidy Cuts – By Mary Clare Jalonick, Associated Press (Published by WTOV9.com)

EXCERPT: Republicans have quietly maneuvered to prevent a House spending bill from chipping away at federal farm subsidies, instead forging ahead with much larger cuts to domestic and international food aid. The GOP move will probably prevent up to $167 million in cuts in direct payments to farmers, including some of the nation’s wealthiest. The maneuver, along with the Senate’s refusal Tuesday to end a $5 billion annual tax subsidy for ethanol-gasoline blends, illustrates just how difficult it will be for Congress to come up with even a fraction of the trillions in budget savings over the next decade that Republicans have promised. Meanwhile, the annual bill to pay for food and farm programs next year would cut food aid for low-income mothers and children by $685 million, about 10 percent below this year’s budget.