House ag committee schedules Washington hearings

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas has announced another series of hearings on the 2012 farm bill to begin next week in Washington, D.C.

The six subcommittees will hold the hearings throughout April and May to hear from national agricultural stakeholders advocating for policy priorities.



In June, the committee held 11 audit hearings on agriculture programs to look for ways to improve programs for farmers, increase efficiency and reduce spending. Lucas then took committee members to the countryside to hear directly from producers in the field.

The hearings slated for Washington will round out the information gathering in advance of writing legislation, according to a House Ag Committee news release at http://agriculture.house.gov/.

Witnesses for the hearings have not been announced.



The hearing schedule is as follows:

• April 25, Subcommittee on Rural Development, Research, Biotechnology and Foreign Agriculture — rural development programs;

• April 26, Subcommittee on Conservation, Energy and Forestry — conservation programs;

• April 26, Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy and Poultry — dairy programs;

• May 8, Subcommittee on Nutrition and Horticulture — nutrition and specialty crop programs;

• May 10, Subcommittee on Department Operations, Oversight and Credit — credit programs;

• May 16, Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management — commodity programs and crop insurance;

• May 17, Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management — commodity programs and crop insurance;

• May 18, Subcommittee on Conservation, Energy and Forestry — energy and forestry programs.



American Farm Bureau Farm (AFBF) Policy Specialist Mary Kay Thatcher says the new farm bill will look a lot different than farm bills of the past. Listen to an interview conducted by Johnna Miller, director of Media Development for AFBF at http://www.fb.org/rafiles/newsline/69703_nl_3.mp3.