Issue Position: Agriculture

Issue Position

In the center of America's Heartland, Missouri is a proud and longstanding agricultural state. With over 100,000 farms, agriculture brings over $33 billion to Missouri's economy. How we support agricultural education and research and manage and preserve our agricultural lands today will affect the prosperity of our region in the coming years.

Farm Bill

The farm bill passed on January 29, 2014 is not a perfect bill, but one I felt was important to make compromises on and support in a bipartisan fashion. Our democracy was built on compromise, and our failure to come together to solve our nation's problems continues to put our shared future in jeopardy.I have spoken out against the more than $8 billion in cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. But after talking with constituents in Missouri's Fifth District, including myAgricultural Advisory Committee, area farmers, ranchers, representatives from food banks in urban, rural, and suburban areas, as well as many others, I agreed a vote in favor of the bill was necessary in order to move the district, and the country, forward. We hear the most about the nutrition and farm programs, but there are also programs in this bill to protect our soil and water, feed our seniors and our students, increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables so all Americans can eat green, promote our American products overseas, better our research programs at our universities, and more. H.R. 2642 garnered support from numerous local, state, and national groups. Some of those included the American Farm Bureau Federation, the Missouri Farm Bureau, American Soybean Association, Dairy Farmers of America, National Corn Growers Association, United States Cattlemen's Association, Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, National Association of Conservation Districts, National Wildlife Federation and the Missouri Wine & Grape Board.

Anti-Hunger Programs

According to the Census Bureau, nearly 50 million Americans lived in poverty in 2010. Most importantly, this means that 13.6 million children and 6.2 million seniors are struggling to exist on a daily basis. It is imperative that we not take nutrition benefits from Americans that are struggling to stay out of poverty and to feed themselves and their family. Additionally, nearly 46 million Americans rely on the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP). Programs such as SNAP and the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) stimulate local economies while keeping American citizens nourished and out of poverty. Every $1.00 of federal SNAP benefits generates nearly double that amount in local economic activity. I will continue to fight for the well-being of American citizens, so I support continued funding for such programs in the Farm Bill and in yearly appropriations.

Agriculture Disaster Assistance

I am proud to have introduced new legislation (H.R. 1454) to help area farmers, ranchers, and producers recover from last year's record drought. This legislation would make critically important supplemental agriculture disaster assistance available. The drought last summer in Missouri, and much of the nation, was devastating for livestock producers, forage producers, and tree and specialty crop farmers, and was compounded by the expiration of the USDA agriculture disaster programs. My legislation would provide retroactive relief for those producers, and I will continue to push for its inclusion in the farm bill reauthorization.

Local & Regional Food Systems & Food Deserts

Local food systems have the potential to yield significant benefits to the economy and create jobs. According to a recent study by the Union of Concerned Scientists, a modest amount of public funding for between 100-500 farmers markets could create as many as 13,500 jobs over a five-year period. By providing further investment in local and regional food systems, we can bolster agriculture and put people back to work.

According to the Department of Agriculture, more than 13.5 million people live in a food desert; they live more than a mile from a grocery store or large supermarket in an urban area or more than 10 miles away in a rural area. With support for local and regional food systems and programs such as the Healthy Food Financing Initiative and the Let's Move Campaign, we can support local farmers, provide healthy food choices for families, and help our children grow up healthier.

Source