the way it is designed right now creates the money that goes back within thes program usda. have not found a jobs program in the federal government that ever worked. i came from the private sector. when you look at that, i would be more inclined to take that money and saying, how do we make sure that it goes toward job training but not a federal program that does it. we have a number of sick -- federal programs that are dismal failures. to give more money to a program that has not worked in the past is just creating a full his mistake. those are at that, some of the ongoing negotiations that are happening. th -- the ag and on on one on the nutrition side. the current elections that we am, people are, just like i tired of the talk from the deputy attorney general, they are tired of congress. here is -- it is time that actually do something. having a show boat or just vote on myt a amendment, that does not carry any weight back home with me and that is why i become a little bit more difficult to negotiate with. i want to see results. i was in the private sector. i only got pai

between act domination of programs like usda and the gpo and the gri, there's much to do. yet the next funding bill won't hurt farmers who are trying to reduce runoff. you know all this, i wanted to emphasize it. senator ernst and grassley -- lake erie is the shallowest lake. the usda already has some authority to implement. what is usda's plan to implement targeted practice in the western banch of lake erie? >> certainly our education programs in nutrient management, and helping to teach identification, and there's new technology of being able to have on the farms, phosphorus and-we're working on conser conservation efforts. enter we need your strong voice and continued support on that, on conservation program and on glri, the administration has made more than noises, it's attempted to cut glri. in 2016, i work with senators don lee and the program targeted producers for farmers who wanted to reduce runoff from their farms. this program has ended but we can't walk away. will you commit to finding additional funding for this water flow. >> i will commit to looking. of the.

like this is very much the kind of things you'd be looking for as you're developing this pilot program at usda. >> certainly is. we'd love to look at that program closely to model some of our parameters around. >> well, i would love to have you -- love to welcome you to minnesota and we could show you around and show you how it's working. i think it's a really good model with good speed goals. you have speed, reliability, affordability. it's all coming together. just want to touch on another thing that i know is so important to minnesotans living in rural areas, which is the challenges around housing. in rural areas, it's the housing that is often the oldest housing stock. the biggest challenges with affordability. senator shaheen and i have introduced our rural housing protection act, which would protect access to affordable housing for families in rural areas. i wanted to just give you an opportunity, i'd love to have you take a look at that proposal and would love to give you an opportunity to talk about housing issues as you see it. >> certainly. one of rural development's portfolios certa

programs. right now the usda can provide information on the impact of conservation programs in terms of contracts and acres but they lack the ability to provide the impact of these programs on important resource concerns. by ensuring the usda has all the tools necessary to collect this information, we can better protect and preserve these programs into the future. e usda's voluntary conservation programs are helping farmers make investments into natural resources while also increasing farm product iity. this will ensure they can continue to improve existing practices while supporting our nation's farmers. mr. chairman, we'll also seek in response to concerns raised by the farm pew row in concerns to further refine the privacy ovisions relating to the research activities that research activities that would take place under this bill to ensure that any personally identifiable information that would be contained with the analysis of conservation programs is further protected by the united states department of agriculture. >> you have my commitment to work with the gentleman to address the farm burea

distilled spirits, beer and other alcohol products from the value-added producer grant program administered by the usda. these industries in my state, and quite frankly across the nation, are a growing segment of our farm economy, producing -- providing thousands of jobs. it's also important to point out that -- the growing significance of wine and hops exports to their industries. last year my state exported $28 million of wine, representing 5% of our total production. in my home valley of the yak ma valley in the state of washington, we account for 75% of the u.s. production of hops. with the continued boom of microbreweries and the demand for hops, we must ensure we have available markets. our wine grape growers and the wine industry continue to face challenges in export markets such as the recent tariffs placed on our products by china. we are in an environment with potential changes in international trade and farmers are looking for more export markets. and i urge my colleagues to oppose any efforts to limit our farmers' ability to find markets for their products. i have two letters, mr. speaker,

the way is designed right now actually creates the money that goes back into a jobs program within the usda. i have not found a jobs program and the federal government that ever works. i came from the private sector and you look at that, i would be more inclined to take a that money and say how do we make sure it goes towards job-training, but not a federal program that does it. we have got a number of federal programs that are dismal failures. to give more money to a program that has not worked in the past is just creating a foolish mistake. , those of at that some of the ongoing negotiations happening. is this getting votes on your amendments or -- rep. meadows: i think the elections, the current elections we see, just like i'm tired of the talk from the deputy attorney general, they are tired of talk from members of congress. it's time we actually do something. vote or just saying i've got to vote on my amendment, that doesn't carry any weight back calm and that's why perhaps i become a little more difficult to negotiate with because of want to see results. i was in the private sector, i

in fact last year the court had to appoint a special master to oversee the program and the usda inspector general is conducting a separate investigation. former usda undersecretary testified congress and i quote the mexico is probably the most fouled up snap system in the united states. imagine asking that same department to develop and oversee a new massive snap bureaucracy. at best it will create state barriers that dramatically increase the length of time that hungry new mexicans have to wait for benefits and at worst it will improperly kick new mexicans off nutrition support and create an environment that discourages people from ever applying in the first place. either way, new mexicans will suffer. >> the gentle ladies time is expired. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i want to associate myself with the marks of my colleagues who will attest definitively demonstrated that indeed tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands across the country will lose their food benefits. in new hampshire we currently have 92000 individuals in 37000 families relying on supplemental nutrition assistance

the amendment allows military towns who are on the bubble of eligibility for usda rural development programs the ability to apply for loans and rants for their communities. town populations change frequently and having this buffer will otherwise allow ineligible communities the ability to apply and compete for assistance in funding critical facilities such as fire departments, hospitals and children's centers. allowing these communities to compete for financial assistance does not increase spending for these programs. we're probably only talking about four military towns at this point. so these towns, in the rural of -- in the rural part of america, and again, we're just saying that they should have the ability to compete. that is the amendment. the best i can explain it. and i ask for support of the amendment. the chair: does the gentleman reserve his time? mr. jones: i reserve time, excuse me. the chair: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. is there any member in opposition to the amendment? the question is on -- the gentleman from north carolina is recognized. mr. jones: the ch

programs that are untested and lack evidence. mandatory work has not proven to be successful. usda has just contracted for a study to learn more. i think that we should wait to incorporate the results before we mandate more programs on individual states. as demonstrated what governor wolf said to me. so i'm saying to you, mr. chairman, it's clear from the uneasiness that members have on this particular committee, that we need not to move forward. i express to you as a new member of this committee who wants to work to everybody and get things done that food is important to everyone. food is not partisan. food is an issue that we all should recognize, as the ranking member just said very clearly, this is a food program for the poor. and we should not take that lightly. we all need to understand that this affects us all. so i say to you, coming from one of the poorest big cities in the united states, philadelphia, where poverty is like 26, 30%, it's clear to me that we are going in the wrong direction. so i ask you, mr. chairman, to deeply consider what action we are taking and this is going to be a benefit to the people of this co

just briefly, this amendment or this individual will be tasked with coordinating usda programs, providing technical assistance to community leaders who are working to improve the lives of those living in food deserts. mr. crawford: this is a small measure of progress that we can be proud of and continue to ensure folks have access to food. however, i would be remiss if i didn't mention that access to healthy and nutritious food relies on the food security system. the strong food security system provided by this farm bill. and i thank the chairman for his leadership in that regard. as it will soon vote on amendments, i urge my colleagues to remember the importance of a strong food security system. for all of our commodities. whether that be under the a.r.c. program or p.l.c. program for crops such as rice, soybeans or corn or the current sugar program. if we pick apart our commodity programs one by one, we will create giant holes in our nation's food security system. this compromises our national security and hinders our ability to provide healthy, nutritious nood food. not just to rural c

this provision is only about ensuring that usda can actually count the members of the community for the purposes of role development programs. accurately counting the size of the community will ensure that usda understands the community tax base and its needs, counties like adair shouldn't be knighted the opportunity to address the needs of their rural communities because they're working with their neighbors for the benefit of the entire region. my amendment simply helps them ensure there on the level playing field to compete for role development funds. i encourage my colleagues to support the box and support rule america by voting for the farm bill today. mr. chairman, i'll back. >> mr. crawford, five minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i just want to thank you and the committee staff for allowing me too implement this and included in the block amendments. one of the simplest ones we may entertain throughout this whole process that just allows the secretary of agriculture to establish a program recognizing the service of farmers who have operated farms continuously in their families for a hundred years of operation. i thi

and i know he recognizes that the trade promotion programs that i referenced in my opening remarks are vital to our agriculture economy. for decades, usda export development programs like m.a.p. have helped american farmers create, expand, and maintain access to foreign markets. throughout their history, the successful public-private partnership has cultivated hundreds of billions of dollars in exports and created millions of american jobs, both in the agricultural sector and in support industries, as well as the program brings a return to the united states economy. in the findings of the underlying bill, it states that united states export development programs significantly increase demand for the united states agricultural products, generating a return of $28 in added export revenue for each invested program dollar. additionally, our global competitors provide substantially more public support for export promotion than is provided in the united states agricultural exporters. we are at a competitive disadvantage when it comes to the rest of the world when it comes to agricultural trade. mr. chairman, without these private contributions

this provision is only about ensuring that usda can accurately count the members of a community for the purposes of rural development programs. accurately counting the size of the community will ensure that usda understands a community's tax base and its needs. my amendment helps them ensure they are on a level playing field. >> mr. crawford, five minutes. >> i just want to thank you and the committee staff for allowing me to implement this to include this in the on block amendments. one of the interesimplest ones allows a program recognizing the service of people who have operated farms continuously in their family for 100 years of operation. i think in this day and age where we see less than 2% of the american public operating our farms, the least we can do is recognize that service and sacrifice and the contribution they make to our national security. with that, i yield back. >> mr. dunn, five minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman for supporting my four amendments as part of the on block amendment which addresses trade, education and research priorities on behalf of the people of florida's second congressional district. at

usda says there are 48,000 farms across the state of florida. as you take your questions on that as well as the food stamp program. democrats host: there is also -- one of the reasons this farm bill failed, as you mentioned, conservative republicans upset over a push by moderate up against to protect so-called dreamers, those that are participants in the deferred action child's arrival program. "the washington post" today says the gop negotiators on this, the centrist republicans, have delayed their vote over immigration, and this is where things stand. one additional republican signed the petition wednesday. four more signatures are necessary. sign, all 193 democrats then a petition could go to the floor and force a vote on daca. have you signed the petition? guest: yes, i just let everyone in leadership in the democratic party has signed it -- just about everyone in leadership in the democratic party has signed it, so i believe we are four both away. i believe we will have 100% of democrats. no other country than the united states. in my district, there are 80,000. they are ambitious. they don't take for granted

usda more flexibility. we're going to hear arguments about candy bars, candy companies and lots of other distractions. but it's all brought up to shift attention away from the very program we're here to debate, the sugar program. in reality, the sugar program hates sunshine. it hates getting the spotlight. but i'm glad we're debating it here today. i reserve the balance of my time. the chair: the gentlelady reserves the balance of her time. does any member wish to claim time in opposition to the amendment? the gentleman from texas is recognized. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i rise in extreme opposition to ms. foxx's amendment. she singles out sugar, cuts this program to where it was 33 years ago. denigrates the hardworking men and women, the farmers, those processors she mentioned are coop owned, they're earned by those hardwork farmers. mr. conaway: there's no inactivity with respect to the sugar industry. she couldn't be more wrong or more disrespectful of them. her amendment would not save the taxpayer one dime. 15 out of the last 16 years the sugar program has not worked. if we were to remove it under title 1 to treat treat it the way other commodities were treated,

programming proposal? will you move before tribal council sanctions take place, which is absolutely crucial as you know? >> we're going through the stakeholders. we started out with the usda on basic science. we brought in the ses to change the boundaries a little. we continue to talk on the house side. we go through to make sure that when we do this, that it is not a surprise. a lot of stakeholders are having a conservation roundtable next week. this is a large spectrum across the board. on the tribal consultation, we have begun the process, but again we have not made a determination for the tribes themselves. -- as a partner organization, or remain as they are. this is a decision that they should make. what we have to do is articulate why i think, why the department thinks, ultimately it is the decision that they have to make. we are prepared either way. i want to emphasize that it does not really affect the park units -- unit, or a wildlife refuge. what it affects is the decisions on recreation and permitting that operate on a landscape level. we talked about, there is no reason that a trail has to start on the blm property and turns into a park. these are absolutely d

for instance, usda has the capability to finance the construction of hospitals, to implement telemedicine programs, and carry out health education initiatives. we want to make sure that these efforts are fully coordinated and leveraged with the u.s. department of health and human services and other federal agencies as well as other important health care stakeholders. among other things, the rural health liaison would consult with h.h.s. on rural health issues and improve communication with all federal agencies. it will provide expertise on rural health care issues. it would lead and coordinate strategic planning on rural health activities within the usda, and it would advocate on behalf of the health care and relevant infrastructure needs in rural areas. i thank senator rounds and senator smith for their support on this important legislation. and i look forward to working together with them and other colleagues to move this bill forward. mr. president, this is a great example of how senators from both sides of the aisle can come together to propose commonsense legislation to make government work b

it's the title of the program that this amendment establishes. this amendment simply authorizes usda to match funds spent by land grant universities on efforts to help native students succeed and ultimately graduate. madam chairwoman. i'm going to reserve the balance of my time. the chair: the gentlewoman reserves. the gentleman from minnesota is recognized. mr. peterson: i'll claim opposition so i can support the amendment. the chair: madam chairwoman. i'm going to reserve the without objection. mr. peterson: i yield back. the chair: the gentleman yields back. the gentlewoman from south dakota is recognized. miss mow yem -- mrs. noem: thank you. mr. chairman, this initiative is incredibly important. we're huge challenges in the great plains region our tribes impoverished nd more than any other tribes in the nation. many times these youths struggle with homelessness with lack of belief and opportunity they have. i want to thank our ranking member for supporting the amendment. it's incredibly important that we offer opportunities to these tribal youth and give them the chance to go on

programming proposal? will you move before tribal council sanctions take place, which is absolutely crucial as you know? >> we're going through the stakeholders. we started out with the usda on basic science. we brought in the ses to change the boundaries a little. we continue to talk on the house side. we go through to make sure that when we do this, that it is not a surprise. a lot of stakeholders are having a conservation roundtable next week. this is a large spectrum across the board. on the tribal consultation, we have begun the process, but again we have not made a determination for the tribes themselves. -- as a partner organization, or remain as they are. this is a decision that they should make.

usda to be fractionally down from last year. commodity prices for many crops and livestock are at or close to the longer than average levels. context, i do want to begin the panel program by giving the floor to dr. goodwin to discuss title i programs. goodwin: thank you for allowing us this chance to talk on farm policy again. i'm going to mainly talk on title i programs, which typically has been the main of thety program title farm bill. and before we do that, i want to say a little bit about the political setting and economic setting. i will read you this entire quote. it is quite telling in terms of what is happening now with the farm bill. it notes there has been a 45% the in net farm income, largest drop since the great depression. a drop since 2013. farms are now highly or extremely leveraged. 'sis was chairman conaway opening statement when the farm bill deliberations were beginning. if you look at farm income, farm tosehold income, relative , it it-household income above since the early 1990's, both the mean income and media income. all includes income from sources. the breakout by different occupations, it really tells the same story. typically much wealthier

programs we've got across lines of our administration. we do cooperate with our partners in the other administrations for this is something that i've been aware of even before through usda was doing some things like that to encourage farming and that kind of thing or veterans. this is something that we are excited about. >> great. thank you all very much. thank you mr. chair. >> thank you very much. let me ask you a few things that i think are important. we talked about but i think we need to continue to talk about as we meet periodically. last june the secretary announced his decision to adopt the same electronic health record used by dod which is a very, very good idea and makes all the sense in the world. at the time he said the va would not need additional funding in fiscal year 18 however by the end of october va submitted a formal reprogramming request in the amount of $782 million and these were to award the contract. it's now may 11, months after secretaries initial announcement, six months after the first reprogramming request and a month and a half after the subcommittee updated the $782 million. they are still no action by the va. in light of the continued de

usda says there are 48,000 farms across the state of florida. as you take your questions on that as well as the food stamp program.emocrats host: there is also -- one of the reasons this farm bill failed, as you mentioned, conservative republicans upset over a push by moderate up against to protect so-called dreamers, those that are participants in the deferred action child's arrival program. "the washington post" today says the gop negotiators on this, the centrist republicans, have delayed their vote over immigration, and this is where things stand. one additional republican signed the petition wednesday. four more signatures are necessary. sign, all 193 democrats then a petition could go to the floor and force a vote on daca. have you signed the petition? guest: yes, i just let everyone in leadership in the democratic party has signed it -- just about everyone in leadership in the democratic party has signed it, so i believe we are four both away. i believe we will have 100% of democrats. no other country than the united states. in my district, there are 80,000. they are ambitious. they don't take for granted b

before you said that usda is a customer-focused department, but i know in my town halls all over oregon, and this year i'll hit 360 of them, and the ag issues come up. a lot of the programs that are cut in here are the ones that the farmers are raising for me. and then we have rural development, an agency that you had noted was very important to you personally, but more than 43 programs that benefit small rural communities are eliminated. a number of vital housing loan and grant programs, the entire rural service, the entirely waste disposal grant program. and i should comment on the water and waste, because as i go to small communities, they talk about how the changing standards for clean water and for wastewater treatment, the expansion needed for their towns to go and their manufacturing to come in and just the fact that their old system has worn out makes clean water supply and wastewater treatment just an essential element, a very expensive element, a very difficult element, and how important these water and waste programs are. so, those are just some of the concerns i wanted to raise, and i hope to get a better insight on your strategy and your thinking in this hea

distilled spirits, beer and other alcohol products from the value-added producer grant program administered by the usda. these industries in my state, and quite frankly across the nation, are a growing segment of our farm economy, producing -- providing thousands of jobs. it's also important to point out that -- the growing significance of wine and hops exports to their industries. last year my state exported $28 million of wine, representing 5% of our total production. in my home valley of the yak ma valley in the state of washington, we account for 75% of the u.s. production of hops. with the continued boom of microbreweries and the demand for hops, we must ensure we have available markets. our wine grape growers and the wine industry continue to face challenges in export markets such as the recent tariffs placed on our products by china. we are in an environment with potential changes in international trade and farmers are looking for more export markets. and i urge my colleagues to oppose any efforts to limit our farmers' ability to find markets for their products. i have two letters, mr. speaker,