Farm Bill Agreement Pt 2
I'm Bob Larson. If you haven't heard what appears to be good news yet, House and Senate negotiators have reached a deal on the 2018 Farm Bill. In a joint statement from leaders on both Ag Committees, the agreement in principle is headed to the Congressional Budget Office for finalization.Representative Dan Newhouse says he spoke with the expected new leadership who assured him getting a Farm Bill done was a top priority ...
NEWHOUSE ... "Well, I had a conversation with Collin Peterson who will likely be the Chairman of the Ag Committee and he told me that if we don't get it passed in December he will definitely, early on in the year, get the Farm Bill passed. He is determined not to let it linger long into 2019. So, that tells me there's determination to get it done very soon on both sides of the aisle."
As the new Ag Chairman, Newhouse says he's worked with Peterson before ...
NEWHOUSE ... "Well, you know, he's been Chairman before. When I was Director of Agriculture, he was Chairman of the Ag Committee. I found Collin very easy and good to work with. He certainly has the best interests of the agricultural industry at heart and so I would suspect that we will continue to see a very active, proactive agricultural House committee under his leadership."
Newhouse says he's been told leadership is committed to delivering a new Farm Bill as quickly as possible."
The leadership quartet that announced the agreement are, from the Senate, Texas Republican Mike Canaway and Kansas Republican Pat Roberts, and from the House, ranking members Minnesota Democrat Collin Peterson and Michigan Democrat Debbie Stabenow.