[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 107 (Thursday, June 23, 2022)]
[House]
[Page H5830]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        FARM BILL IMPACT SERIES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Kansas (Mr. Mann) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to deliver the twelfth 
installment of my Farm Bill Impact Series: The Second State of 
Agriculture.
  We are at the end of the second quarter, and one of the biggest 
issues facing agriculture across the board is the cost of things. 
Farmers, ranchers, and agricultural producers are laboring under the 
skyrocketing input costs while they work hard to keep our country fed, 
fueled, and clothed. They deserve workable solutions to this inflation 
crisis before the situation gets any worse.
  The U.S. farm economy crashed in the early to mid-1980s due in part 
to surging inflation. From 2000 to 2020, the average annual rate of 
inflation was 2.1 percent, which economists consider a normal rate of 
inflation that helps drive overall economic growth. Last year, prices 
increased 7 percent overall throughout 2021, which was the largest 
December-to-December percentage change since 1981.

                              {time}  1045

  Inflation is a matter of life and death for the American farm. We saw 
it in the early 1980s, and now we are seeing it again. Farmers, 
ranchers, and agricultural producers are feeling the effects of 
inflation more acutely than almost anyone else in America.
  In agriculture, commodity prices generally rise during periods of 
inflation, but input costs rise as well. Data collected by USDA shows 
that over the past three decades, on average, the input costs for U.S. 
farmers, ranchers, and agricultural producers tend to increase more 
than the rate of inflation and more than the prices that they receive 
for their products. To make matters worse, USDA estimates that input 
costs will continue to rise at least 5 to 6 percent throughout 2022.
  In the last 12 months, feed, supplies, and repairs are all up 13 
percent while ag chemicals, building materials, and machinery are all 
up 21 percent.
  Most shockingly, just during the last 12 months, fuel is up 115 
percent, natural gas is up 202 percent, and fertilizer is up 220 
percent.
  Think about that. This year it is costing farmers more than double 
what it cost last year to farm their land.
  The farm bill contains relief safety net programs like crop insurance 
and livestock indemnity, but these programs don't account for the 
rising costs of fuel, fertilizer, pesticides, and seed. Agriculture is 
a business, and business owners can't afford to lose money year after 
year, which is happening now thanks to skyrocketing inflation. We need 
to get this situation under control.
  A Kansas wheat grower recently said to me:
  ``Fertilizer is one of the largest expenses on any commercial farming 
operation. My farm has already used more than 450 tons of fertilizer 
for this cropping season, which includes nearly 350,000 pounds of UAN, 
specifically. Even though we cut back on how much we use because of the 
increased price, it will still cost our farm almost $70,000 more than 
last year. Looking forward, we will undoubtedly have to cut back on 
fertilizer again until prices begin to come down.''
  Fertilizer cost is a major problem, but the rising cost of everything 
else is only compounding the issue further. For instance, if you are a 
Kansas rancher looking to replace all the fence on your farm with 4-
barb, Red Brand wire, last year you would have been quoted $10,000 per 
mile. This year, quotes are coming in at around $20,000 a mile, so it 
has doubled. Think about that.
  From fertilizer to fuel to equipment to fencing, inflation is 
crushing producers across this country. How can small business owners 
keep up with this? How can we expect the people who bear the 
responsibility of feeding, fueling, and clothing the world to shoulder 
that burden while going broke from doing so?
  The people who make sacrifices so that we can eat can't afford to buy 
gas to drive their kids to school right now. They can't afford to pay 
their mortgages. American farmers are perfectly capable of producing 
plentiful, healthy affordable food, but no matter how much they grow 
and sell, inflation is killing their margins and they are going out of 
business.
  How does the Biden administration respond to this crisis? Well, the 
President's budget proposal dismantles the stepped-up basis and imposes 
new capital gains taxes like the farm killer tax on small businesses 
held in families for 90 years or more. These proposals would destroy 
thousands of American family farms overnight. House Democrats, for 
their part, would like to distract the Federal Reserve with social 
policy while inflation is at a 40-year high.
  These ideas are a slap in the face to every American farmer, rancher, 
and agricultural producer. While this administration burns through 
money like there is no tomorrow, American producers are working 
tirelessly to keep America secure despite the effects of inflation on 
their businesses. We owe them not only a debt of gratitude, but also 
real solutions to the inflation crisis before it is too late.

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