[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 16] [Extensions of Remarks] [Page 23646] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]AGRICULTURAL RISK PROTECTION ACT OF 1999 ______ speech of HON. JIM NUSSLE of iowa in the house of representatives Wednesday, September 29, 1999 The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2559) to amend the Federal Crop Insurance Act, to strengthen the safety net for agricultural producers by providing greater access to more affordable risk management tools and improve protection from production and income loss, to improve the efficiency and integrity of the Federal crop insurance program, and for other purposes: Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 2559, the Agricultural Risk Protection Act. I would like to start by saying how impressed I am with the progress the House has made this year in transforming the concept of Federal crop insurance reform into the legislation we have in front of us today. In 1994, as a member of the House Agriculture Committee, I had the opportunity to help write the last revision of the Federal crop insurance program. While the 1994 bill was a step in the right direction, that reform was done under the old Depression-era farm policy. I said then that the crop insurance program needed to become more farmer friendly by providing participation incentives for farmers. As everyone in this chamber should recall, on February 1, 1999, the President submitted to Congress his fiscal year (FY) 2000 budget which failed to include a single dollar for crop insurance reform. After the President submitted his budget, I began working with House Budget Committee Chairman Kasich to provide funds for crop insurance reform in the House's FY 2000 budget. After a long hard-fought battle, on March 25, 1999, the House took a critical step in securing the necessary funds to reform crop insurance this year by providing $6 billion over five years for crop insurance in the FY 2000 budget. This decision by the Budget Committee gave the House and Senate Agriculture Committees the flexibility to address the need for workable risk management tools that are available to all farmers. I applaud the House Agriculture Committee for the legislation they have brought before the House today. This legislation will provide future stability in the farm safety net by increasing premium assistance to producers, rewarding the productive capability of farmers, and creating new coverage for falling crop values and livestock losses. This legislation simply offers more choices to more farmers and less cost to farmers and taxpayers. This bill addresses the need for workable risk management tools that are available to all farmers. This is the kind of long-term help the Federal Government can and should provide to American farmers in the 21st century, without turning back the clock to Depression-era programs that had Washington bureaucrats telling farmers what to plant and where to plant it. By passing this legislation, establishing strong foreign markets, reducing burdensome regulations, and improving access to affordable financing for farmers, I believe our government can give farmers the tools they need to compete in a world market. I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 2559. ____________________