S. 284 would provide emergency agricultural disaster assistance.
Detailed Summary
Emergency Farm Relief Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to provide financial assistance for: (1) crop disaster assistance for qualifying quantity or quality losses (other than sugar beets) for the 2005 and/or 2006 crop due to weather or related conditions (including disease, insects, and delayed harvest); (2) dairy losses; (3) livestock assistance for 2005 and 2006 disaster-caused losses, including losses from blizzards that began in 2006 and continued into 2007; (4) livestock indemnity payments for 2005 and 2006 disaster-caused losses, including wildfires, hurricanes, floods, extreme heat, anthrax, and blizzards that began in 2006 and continued into 2007; (5) ewe lamb replacement and retention; (6) sugar beet disaster assistance for crop year 2005 or 2006; (7) sugarcane growers in Hawaii through a payment to an agricultural transportation cooperative in Hawaii; and (8) flooded crop and grazing land in the Devils Lake basin, the McHugh, Lake Laretta, and Rose Lake closed drainage areas, North Dakota.
Directs the Secretary to make grants to state agriculture departments or comparable agencies in qualified states for direct economic loss payments to eligible small businesses that suffered weather-related agricultural losses in crop year 2005 or 2006.
Directs the Secretary to use specified funds to carry out emergency measures under: (1) the emergency watershed protection program, including specified projects in Hawaii; (2) the emergency conservation program, including wildfire recovery efforts in Montana and other states and specified projects in Hawaii; and (3) the environmental quality incentives program, including wildfire and blizzard recovery efforts in Montana and other states.
Directs the Secretary to use specified funds to hire additional county Farm Service Agency personnel to expedite the delivery of agricultural disaster and economic assistance.
Status of the Legislation
Latest Major Action: 1/12/2007: Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
Points in Favor
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Points Against
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Visitor Comments
Mario
Perhaps I don't understand, but this seems to be a government insurance plan for "farmers," aka major corporations that run farming operations. There is insurance for "disaster" relief.
Aren't there already enough farm subsidies on the books? Do we need to subsidize their insurance too?