Iowa

Floor Speech

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Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, on another matter, as I hold my 99 county meetings, I always hear from the farmers about the ag economy, and it is a top concern for all Iowans, of course, because Iowa is the No. 1 State in the Nation for food production.

Yesterday, I welcomed the opportunity to discuss what is on the minds of family farmers with Agriculture Secretary Rollins as she appeared for her annual oversight appearance before the Senate Agriculture Committee. And it happens that I believe that the Madam Secretary is a great advocate for the family farmers, and I appreciate how she is handling the Office of the Agriculture Secretary.

Now, back home in Iowa, I hear Congress could do more to help the farmers. For instance, I hear about year-round E15. Now, that is good for the consumers because it would reduce gas prices 20 to 40 cents, but it is also good because our major crop in Iowa--corn--is where ethanol is manufactured from.

And then I also hear from the agriculture community about we need to deal with the problem of the State of California having what is called Proposition 12, and that prohibits Iowa pork that isn't raised just exactly the way California says it is raised. It can't be sold in the State of California, and that ought to irritate Members of Congress because 1 of the 18 powers of Congress under the Constitution in article I is the power to regulate interstate and foreign commerce.

So we have 1 State out of 50--California--saying that you can't sell pork in their State--and California is about 15 percent of the consumer market in the United States--if it isn't raised just exactly the way the law of California says it should be raised. So the farmers of Iowa are telling me: Get rid of Proposition 12.

Now, basics of a strong society is feeding your people. And the tax bill that the President signed last July 4, called the Working Families Tax Cut, was a good start to strengthening farm programs because we strengthened the farm safety net by raising support prices for corn to $4.10 and soybeans to $10 a bushel. But that isn't enough to help farmers that are underwater, not making a profit. So there is more work that needs to be done.

So here, in somewhat of a repetitive statement, it is time for the Senate to pass a 5-year farm bill. The last one was 2018. Inflation affecting agriculture demands that there be some changes in the 2018 farm bill and that we pass E15 by law and not rely on Presidential waivers anymore and that we pass Proposition 12 legislation to get rid of the bad environment in California for selling our product there-- pork--because Iowa is the No. 1 pork producer in the Nation.

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