Just Wednesday we were celebrating an agreement reached by congressional leaders to avert a government shutdown, but President-elect Trump and Elon Musk, who Trump has tasked with running the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, spoke out against that continuing resolution that included $10 billion in farm aid and stopped it dead in its tracks.
A new bill was put forth Thursday evening but was struck down by dozens of Republicans and only two Democrats voted in favor of the bill.
With Congress facing a Friday deadline to keep the government open, Farm Bureau Vice President of Public Policy Sam Kieffer is calling for Congress to pass a continuing resolution that includes aid for farmers and ranchers like the original agreement did.
“There’s a good sum of money for states and communities that have been devastated by wildfires, hurricanes, and floods, in general, and specifically for agricultural assistance. And $20 billion out of the $100 billion for natural disasters is targeted to agriculture, and beyond that, there’s ten billion specifically earmarked for agriculture economic assistance.”
It also included the ability for retailers to provide year-round sales of E15 gasoline. Kieffer says the bill doesn’t provide everything agriculture needs, but it’s a good bit of relief for now, and Farm Bureau is asking farmers to engage with their elected officials to get it done.
“Every elected official is important. The last three days, it’s been a process of engaging with the leadership in each chamber, but at this point, votes are what are needed to get this across the finish line. Every elected official needs to understand how important this critical assistance is for farmers and ranchers.”
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Source: NAFB News Service