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COMING SOON: The Center’s annual drive asking for your financial support is on its way to mailboxes across the country. Please respond early and generously! This saves us postage and automatically renews your newsletter subscription. We appreciate your contributions!
DEVELOPMENT & OUTREACH ASSOCIATE: The Center for Rural Affairs is seeking a person to devote their professional life to building a better future for Rural America. This person will be a crucial part of the Center’s development, outreach, and media team.
See the position description and application instructions.
EOE
OUT OF BUDGET
RECONCILIATION, OPPORTUNITY
Citizen pressure and determined Senate leadership stand up to Congressional cynicism and create real hope for farm program payment limits to succeed
On October 12th Center for Rural Affairs staffers and several Iowa farmers met in Holstein, Iowa with Congressman Jim Nussle (R-IA) to advocate for limits on farm program payments to mega farms.
Representative Nussle, House Budget Committee Chair, made it clear that his support for payment limitations is tenuous and tempered by his view that economic decline in rural America has been building for decades. He contended that we have already destroyed our rural communities, that we have hardly any family farms left, and that the genie cannot be put back in the bottle.
He is, quite simply, wrong.
In October’s newsletter we said, “…it is difficult to imagine a more cynical view of public policy and the role of government.” The statement was regarding the Cotton Council and other commodity groups asking Congress to keep the mega payments flowing to mega farms at the expense of family farms, rural communities, and America’s most disadvantaged children and families.
However, Representative Nussle’s view is even more cynical – and, more appallingly, discounts the intelligence, tenacity, and wisdom of every rural American – and discounts their hopes and dreams as well.
Rural citizens know that with the courage of our convictions, with leadership, with hope and determination – we can create a rural future with thriving family farms and ranches and vibrant rural communities. Polls demonstrate that a great majority of rural Americans know that the most effective thing Congress can do to revitalize family farming is limit farm payments that mega farms use to drive smaller operations out of business.
Senate Agriculture Chairman Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) secured enough committee support last month to advance his proposed farm bill cuts without limiting commodity payments to mega farms. But the Grassley-Dorgan payment limit reform measure will be brought for a vote on the Senate floor. And in the Budget Committee we have prevailed on payment limits, by large majorities, three years running, which provides hope for a likely conference committee.
Chaos rules the day in the budget reconciliation process and, out of chaos, opportunity rises – a payment limitations vote in the Senate and a House still looking for budget cuts. The time for payment limits is at hand, and your voice is needed, now more than ever.
Every senator will likely have the chance to vote on payment limits. No matter where you live – city, town, or farm – call your senators and voice your support for payment limits. You will not be alone.
Contact: John Crabtree, 402.687.2103 x 1010 or johnc@cfra.org
for more information on Congressional budget reconciliation.
FARMER/RANCHER
SARE GRANTS FUND INNOVATION
Farmers and ranchers can now apply for funding to test or demonstrate innovative production and marketing ideas. Grants of up to $6000 (individuals) and $18,000 (groups) are available from the North Central Region of USDA’s Sustainable Ag Research and Education (SARE) program. (Other regions have their own timelines; see
http://www.sare.org .)
Previous projects include testing organic grape varieties, using goats to control noxious weeds, on-farm dairy processing, and alternative fertilizer sources. Nearly 550 projects in the 12-state region have been funded since 1992. About 50 projects, or one-fourth of submitted proposals, are selected each year.
Proposals are chosen based on description of environmental, financial, and social impacts; a defined problem with a clear plan for testing; a plan for sharing results; and contribution to sustainable agriculture. A committee of farmers/ranchers, researchers, and agency staff evaluate and select the proposals.
The 5-page applications are due to the NCR-SARE office in Lincoln, Nebraska by December 1. Funding will be available in late spring 2006.
Application packets are available online and from the NCR-SARE office, http://www.sare.org/ncrsare/cfp.htm
or call 800.529.1342. In addition to tips in the packet, your state SARE coordinator can help you refine your idea so it has the best chance of getting funded. See
http://www.sare.org/ncrsare/PDP/pdpstco.htm. Contact Wyatt Fraas for more information,
402.254.6893 or wyattf@cfra.org.
ADDRESSING
MENTAL HEALTH IN OUR RURAL COMMUNITIES
Family and community therapy and learning groups that reach the entire family have decided advantages for rural areas
Last month I set out to show why there has been an increasing amount of stress in rural areas, particularly in farm/ranch settings. Here is a look at ways we need to address the mental wellness of our communities and our families.
An emerging model of community mental health is that of comprehensive and community networks. The old paradigm of mental health care was that of remedial and individual therapy. It is becoming abundantly clear that the old model of tailoring services to meet the individual is falling short of what is needed, particularly in rural areas.
Institutions that need to address these issues also need to change dramatically. In the past, families provided most of the basic resources needed for character development while schools and colleges provided the majority of the cognitive development.
Futurists predict that the mental health of rural individuals must be flexible and open-minded. Constant adaptation to changing conditions will be necessary as well. Modern life is much different than the past. Character development was easier then. Living in small town settings, parents could look over their shoulders passively as the community set behavioral norms for their children to follow.
Of increasing importance today in our small rural communities are conjoint family growth groups. Churches and other institutions need to provide this type of linear process in growth and stability. One of the most comforting aspects of living in our small rural communities is this sense of belonging. While it has dissipated some as we adapt to changes, it still remains evident in our community pride, institutions, and people.
In working on mental health issues in small rural areas, more emphasis needs to be put on family and community therapy rather than the traditional depth psychology, counseling, and individual therapies used previously. Learning groups that reach the entire family social units will have decided advantages over more individualized approaches.
Mental wellness in small rural communities will be determined by our determination to work with the values and morals of the past. Next month we will explore how churches can play a major role in the mental wellness of our communities.
Contact: Michael L. Holton, michaellh@cfra.org
or 402.687.2103 x 1015 to comment. Join the Center’s community revitalization dialogue on the
Blog for Rural America.
CORPORATE FARMING NOTES
Citizens in Ohio and Iowa oppose large-scale livestock confinements; industrial “organic” dairies ignore access to pasture rule
>> Large livestock operations, particularly dairies, have been drawing increasing opposition from smaller farmers throughout rural Ohio. “These dairies are coming in and giving an industrial use to agricultural land,” said Dave Savage, 38, who owns a small livestock farm near South Solon. Savage and other neighbors are appealing state permits authorizing Stardust Dairy to expand to 2,500 cows.
Rural Ohio citizens’ groups have lobbied the Ohio Legislature, Department of Agriculture, and, finally, went to the Environmental Review Appeals Commission to appeal permits for seven large dairies.
One local effort ended up in court when Ross Township trustees amended the zoning code to require state-permitted dairies to also obtain a conditional use permit from the township. Meerland Dairy, which wants to build a 2,100-head dairy, is seeking an injunction against the zoning restrictions.
>> When Jefferson County Farmers and Neighbors, a group organized to stop the alarming growth of CAFOs in Jefferson County, Iowa held a meeting in September, over 400 concerned citizens attended. The group has grown in response to the rapidly increasing construction of industrial hog operations in Iowa.
Francis Thicke, owner of Radiance Dairy in Jefferson County and a member of the Iowa Environmental Commission, reported “The number of new permitted hog lots is up 60 percent. But applications are three times that number, up 300 percent.”
Garry Klicker, a Davis County farmer, spoke to the gathering about living with the odor of six hog CAFOs and over 17,000 hogs near his farm. “How much money should one person make off the misery of many,” Klicker asked.
>> This spring complaints were filed with USDA alleging that a growing number of large, industrial dairies were ignoring the organic law that requires organic dairy cows have “access to pasture.” USDA asked the National Organic Standards Board to revisit their recommendations. The board responded by passing a rule change and new guidance document, which reinforced the “access to pasture” requirement.
USDA rejected the language adopted unanimously by the NOSB, a respected expert advisory panel, and have refused to allow the board to vote on new language at their next meeting.
Contact: John Crabtree at 402.687.2103 x 1010 or
johnc@cfra.org
NEW PUBLICATIONS AND
REPORTS AT THE CENTER
Below are summaries and website links for new publications and reports from the Center’s Rural Research and Analysis Program. If you have any questions or need copies of any publication, please contact Jon Bailey,
jonb@cfra.org, Kim Preston, kimp@cfra.org, or the Center at 402.687.2100.
>> Building Wealth in Rural Communities: The New Homestead Act and Individual Homestead Accounts This report examines the potential for the New Homestead Act and Individual Homestead Accounts to build wealth in rural communities through the creation of jobs, development of small businesses, home ownership and rehabilitation, and enhanced retirement
savings.
>> Building Wealth in Rural Communities: USDA’s Value-Added Producer Grant Program This report examines the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Value-Added Producer Grants Program, which helps to leverage private dollars for critical investments in business enterprises that strengthen struggling rural communities. See page four for an in-depth article on this report.
>> Big Trouble for Small Schools V This Issue Brief is the fifth in the annual series that analyzes Nebraska’s school finance policy. This year’s report examines potential impacts of recent legislation adopted by the Nebraska Legislature and pending legislation, particularly legislation that sets a minimum school enrollment and legislative incentives for schools to consolidate to that size and legislative penalties for schools that remain “small by choice.”
REAP LAUNCHES
INNOVATIVE ONLINE LENDING SYSTEM
Creating and implementing new approaches for reaching today’s rural entrepreneurs keeps this small business program evolving
The Center’s Rural Enterprise Assistance Project (REAP) has long been known as a cutting-edge small business development program, one that strives to meet the needs of startup and existing entrepreneurs in rural Nebraska. Thus we are proud to announce the launch of a new and innovative system in applying for REAP loans.
The new REAP Online Lending System was recently installed on the REAP website. The new system can be accessed on the web by going to
http://www.cfra.org/reap and clicking on “Online Lending System.”
It is important to note that the new online lending system is simply one way to apply for a REAP loan. Entrepreneurs can also download the application and fill it out manually or they can receive the information from REAP staff as in the past.
The online loan application is a secure site. Users enter a user name/password to begin their application. The application can be completed over time by saving changes on the system and returning until the application is ready for submitting.
REAP has also unveiled a new loan product called the “REAP Rapid Loan.” The REAP Rapid Loan incorporates an online application and is a loan product with a $5,000 maximum limit. REAP will continue to offer the “REAP Direct Loan,” a loan product with a $25,000 maximum limit.
The new loan product and loan system will help in expediting the loan process through less paperwork. The entire application for a REAP Rapid Loan can be completed online.
If you have a chance, check out the new REAP Online Lending System and let us know what you think of the new system. If you know of someone who wants to start or expand a small business and is looking for financing, please mention the REAP Online Lending System to them as an option.
Also, keep in mind the full range of services that REAP provides including lending, training, networking opportunities, technical assistance, and loan packaging services for startup and existing microenterprise (businesses with five or fewer employees).
Contact: Jeff Reynolds, 402.656.3091 or jeffr@alltel.net
for more information.
MAKING THE TRANSITION TO
ORGANIC EASIER
Disappointed by record low commodity prices and soaring energy costs, many farmers are giving organic production another look. While grain elevators are paying about $1.50 for corn and $6 for soybeans, organic growers are filling contracts at over $6 for corn and more than $20 for soybeans. The difference is organic certification and a three-year history of no chemical use.
These prices are inviting, but many see the transition phase as too risky to overcome. During the transition phase, growers have to farm without the supplements they rely on for fertility and pest control, but are still 36 months from premium prices. Major concerns include: yield reductions, machinery and facility needs, and lenders demand for cash flow.
To help overcome some of these hurdles, USDA is offering a Nebraska-wide Organic Transition Incentive Program as part of the Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP). This is the same program that provides cost-share for cross-fencing, water lines, retention structures, as well as terraces, windbreaks, and other NRCS programs.
The organic transition payment is $50/acre per year each year for three years on a maximum of 160 acres of cropland. Pasture and rangeland is also eligible but at a reduced payment level.
Although organic practices were the conventional agriculture system for many generations, few farmers today are skilled in the art of natural food production. To help provide the training for a successful transition, the Center is beginning a three-year organic training program where experienced organic farmers and ranchers will share their knowledge and skills.
As with other farming decisions, time is critical. The first ranking/review cutoff date is November 30, 2005. Get in touch with your local NRCS office for more details.
Contact: Martin Kleinschmit, martink@cfra.org
or 402.254.6893.
THOUSANDS BACK SMALL
SCHOOLS IN NEBRASKA
Support for Nebraska’s small schools is strong, as shown by two petition drives
Recently, the Nebraskans for Education finished two petition drives. The first sought the repeal of LB 126 that mandated assimilation of Class I (elementary only) schools into K-12 districts. In order to outright appeal the law, the petition needed to collect at least 10 percent of the registered voters.
Petition collectors got nearly 80,000 signatures but fell short of the required 10 percent, only gathering five percent. However, five percent is enough to put the issue on the 2006 General Election ballot. Supporters will try to stop the forced mergers before the general election by filing a court injunction.
The second petition proposes a constitutional amendment requiring a vote of the people in affected school districts to finalize any school consolidation proposal. This petition is still in circulation. If enough signatures are gathered, it will also be placed on the 2006 General Election ballot.
Recently the Nebraska Coalition for Educational Equity and Adequacy (NCEEA) learned a Lancaster County District Court judge has dismissed their lawsuit seeking to require the state to adequately fund schools.
The suit, filed against state officials by a coalition of rural schools along with two individual school districts and parents in those districts, claimed that the state’s failure to properly fund an adequate education system as required by the state constitution denies students an education that is suitable to the 21st Century.
Coalition leaders will quickly file an appeal to the Nebraska Supreme Court. This decision is out of line with a previous Nebraska Supreme Court decision and with most decisions in other states, whose courts have recognized that the education clause of the constitution means an adequate education for all students.
For further information on the petitions, please call Sharon Craichy 308.346.5095. To learn more about the coalition, visit
http://www.nebrcoalition.org/
SOWING THE SEEDS FOR
COMMUNITY ACTION
“Sowing the Seeds – a Journey of Acting on God’s Dream for Rural Nebraska” was created by an ecumenical group of rural Nebraskans to foster Biblical-based adult study and discussions about God’s vision for rural people, their communities, and the land.
The Center for Rural Affairs helped develop the curriculum and is now helping the group promote it to rural people and churches. When rural people take on the study, they are invited to our Rural Action Network.
This network is designed specifically to inform individuals about action, both at the state and federal levels that can create genuine opportunity and a real future for small communities and family farms. However, you need not participate in the curriculum if you wish to be added to the Rural Action Network.
The Center is also cooperating with the Bishop’s Rural Response Committee of the Nebraska Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church and will be participating in their annual three-day workshop. Details will be available soon on the Center’s website.
Contact Kim Preston for a copy of the curriculum at kimp@cfra.org
or 402.687.2103 x 1022. To participate in the Rural Action Network, contact Kathie Starkweather, 402.687.2103 x 1014 or
kathies@cfra.org or sign-up
here.
SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE AWARD
Jerry DeWitt, a professor at Iowa State University, has visited 25 farms every year during his 33 years with Extension. How many is that? “Not enough,” says Dewitt. He enjoys meeting and helping farmers, and that enthusiasm has resulted in this year’s Spencer Award for Sustainable Agriculture.
Dewitt, an entomologist by training, has interests that range from the science of pest management to the art of photography to support of organic agriculture. He has served at USDA as interim sustainable ag director, co-authored two photography books of farmers, led the development of ISU’s Integrated Pest Management program, and was instrumental in the hiring of two ISU faculty dedicated to research in organic agriculture, the first at a land grant university.
He was the key ISU partner, following farmer Dick Thompson’s lead, in establishing the unique relationship between ISU and Practical Farmers of Iowa that conducts on-farm research projects around the state.
The Spencer Award, administered by the Leopold Center for Sustainable
Agriculture, recognizes farmers, researchers, and educators who have made a significant contribution toward the stability of mainstream family farms in Iowa. The award is named for Norman A. and Margaretha Spencer, who farmed near Sioux City for 40 years, and includes $1,000 from the Spencer family.
DeWitt is the fourth recipient of the annual award and the first non-farmer to be honored. He was recently named interim director of the Leopold Center as former director Fred Kirschenmann became a Distinguished Fellow.
ADMINISTRATION
HAS HISTORIC OPPORTUNITY FOR FARM PROGRAM REFORM
Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns delivered some tough but accurate criticisms of farm programs in his October speech to the Washington Commodity Club. The test will be whether he brings forward real solutions – solutions that strengthen family farms, protect the land, and revitalize rural communities.
Johanns posed the following challenge: “Consider the concerns our producers have raised, including: the WTO cotton case and other potential program challenges, the inability of young people to enter agriculture, government payments capitalizing into higher land value and rising cash rent, large farms getting the lion’s share of payments, and two-thirds of farmers being provided little protection by our farm programs. Now I ask you, is that the best we can do?”
His answer was “certainly not” – as is ours. The cynical interpretation is that the Secretary was presenting a justification for cutting farm programs in order to gain an international trade agreement that appeases corporate interests. Clearly, his speech was aimed in part at making a case for reductions in payments tied to what and how much a farmer produces.
If the sole solution ultimately proposed by the Secretary is an across-the-board reduction in those payments, cynicism would be justified. Cutting payments alone would create a financial crisis for many family farms. And it won’t save family farming.
There are powerful forces in private markets that grant advantages to those with wealth and economic power. Those forces drive concentration at least as much as misguided government policies, as illustrated today in the hog industry and retail sectors.
We need effective government to counter the inherent advantages of wealth and power in private markets – to offset the inherent tendency toward economic concentration. The problem with government today is that it reinforces rather than counters concentration. The solution for rural America lies in reforming government, not in eliminating it.
There is cause for concern with the administration’s commitment to reform. It demonstrated no commitment when it dropped its support for farm program payment limitations in return for votes for the Central America Free Trade Agreement. And in years past, the administration proposed deep cuts in conservation and rural development programs – while keeping big payments flowing to mega farms.
We hope that changes. Secretary Johanns’ statement is a hopeful sign. The test is whether he proposes a true reform agenda and fights for it. The needed reforms include effective farm program payment limitations and meaningful investment in rural development, small business development, high value markets for family farms, beginning farmer programs, and the Conservation Security Program, which supports farmers’ income based on how well they manage the land instead of how much they farm.
If the Secretary advances a true reform agenda, it will be an historic opportunity.
Contact: Chuck Hassebrook, chuckh@cfra.org
or 402.687.2103 x 1018 to comment.
NOTABLES THIS MONTH
>> The first annual Organic Growers Conference will features a
comprehensive treatment of the future of farm subsidies, family farms, and
organic farming as an alternative means for improving our rural economy on Nov.
9 and 10, 2005 in Sergeant Bluffs, Iowa. The Organic Grassfed Beef Coalition
will present cattle genetics, seed stock selection, and raising cattle for
organic beef production – with live demonstrations.
On Nov. 9, Ellen Huntoon, U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee, will present “The
Future of Farm Subsidies and Farm Bill 2007.” Fred Kirschenmann, Leopold
Center at iowa State University,
will present “The Philosophy of Family Farming and Agriculture of the
Middle” on Nov. 10. Gerald Fry and Ridge Shinn, nationally acclaimed experts,
will conduct live cattle demonstrations that day.
Visit http://www.woodburyiowa.com for
the complete agenda, session descriptions, speaker biographies, sponsors, and
registration. Contact Rob Marqusee, 712.279.6609 or rmarqusee@sioux-city.org
for more information.
>> The Prairie Rural Action conference will convene people and
organizations from across the Great Plains in Fargo on November 14 and 15 to
promote new federal policies for revitalizing rural communities. The Center is a
cosponsor along with Northern Great Plains, Inc., Institute for Agriculture and
Trade Policy, Renewing the Countryside, and League of Rural Voters.
The meeting will promote collaboration among organizations across the region to
secure new federal policies to revitalize rural communities. The federal
government now invests little in revitalizing rural communities and creating
economic opportunity for rural people. That reflects the fact that, except on
farm policy, there has been no significant organized constituency advocating for
rural America in Washington.
Our objective for this meeting is to get rural people and groups working
together toward that end – starting with the rural development provisions of
the next farm bill. For more information or to register call Melissa Sobolik at
701.364.1349 or visit their website, http://www.prairieruralaction.org
>> Oregon Tilth celebrates sustainability for the farm, business,
garden, and home at their 31st Annual Conference Saturday, November 19 at the
Salem, Oregon Convention Center. Michael Ableman, farm writer, keynotes the
conference. Workshops range from providing habitat for beneficial insects to
gearing up for national and regional food democracy.
The Center for Rural Affairs and Western Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (WSAWG)
will hold a pre-conference workshop “Making Money and Sustainable Food and
Farm Policy Work for You” from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, November 18.
Details are forthcoming at http://www.tilth.org
or contact workshop co-organizer Kim Leval, 541.687.1490 or kimleval@qwest.net.
The event is free for Tilth members; $25 buys you membership and attendance.
Friday’s Food and Farm Policy workshop will provide tools for engaging in the
upcoming 2007 Farm Bill. Help build a sustainable food and farm blue-print for
action!
>> The Organic Farming Research
Foundation (OFRF), in partnership with the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), has issued a call for proposals to conduct research on managing
weeds, insects, and diseases using organic methods in the intermountain West and
in the Midwest. Through partnership with EPA’s Sustainable Agriculture
Initiative, the funds will be available to farmers, scientists, extension
agents, and other interested research partners in EPA Regions 5 and 8.
Region 5 includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin
and 35 tribal nations in those states. Region 8 includes Colorado, Montana,
North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming, and 27 tribal nations in those
states. Proposals are due December 15, 2005.
FEATURE ARTICLE:
MAKING THE FEDERAL VALUE ADDED PROGRAM BETTER
The federal Value Added Producer Grant (VAPG) program offers an important opportunity to target funding to small and midsized farms, ranches, and agricultural businesses pursuing new consumer-driven markets for sustainably raised agricultural products.
By supplying these markets to farmers and ranchers, the VAPG program has the potential to address agricultural profitability, economic decline, and poverty alleviation in rural areas in new ways.
However, in the Center’s recent report Building Wealth in Rural Communities: USDA’s Value-Added Producer Grant Program, we found that the VAPG program is not reaching its potential as a vehicle for small and midsized farms and ranches as new product innovators and new market suppliers.
Barriers in outreach and program design by USDA and a failure of Congress to abide by its own authorizing language have made the VAPG program less than it could be.
As the 2007 farm bill approaches, the VAPG program is a good program ripe for changes to make it better and more effective on delivering on its promise as a wealth and job creator in rural America.
Among the Center’s recommended changes to the VAPG program is to implement the program to follow its originally stated goal of funding a broad diversity of projects that increase agricultural producers’ share of the consumer dollar.
USDA must incorporate the existing congressional language guiding the program to enhance farm and ranch incomes and increase self-employment opportunities in rural areas by clearly stating these purposes in USDA funding notices, review process, and in the program rules.
USDA must also make these purposes clear in the regulations and in funding decision and evaluation criteria. Firm congressional language targeting the VAPG program in this way exists. USDA must now listen and make the necessary changes.
Debate will begin on the next farm bill in early 2006. The 2007 farm bill is a venue through which the VAPG program will be reauthorized, the program evaluated, and changes made.
The VAPG program can better serve small and midsized farmers and ranchers, thus better addressing the economic forces affecting rural America. In this article we outline recommended policy options for the 2007 farm bill.
Authorizing Language
The Conference Report accompanying H.R. 2646, the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (the official title of the 2002 farm bill), adopted a set of broad purposes for the VAPG program that address the basic policy objectives to be advanced by the program.
Similar language was included in the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee’s Fiscal Year 2003 report. Language from the 2002 farm bill conference report includes:
The Managers intend that the Department (of Agriculture), in administering the (VAPG) program, will seek to fund a broad diversity of projects that help increase agricultural producers’ share of the food and agricultural system profit, including projects likely to increase the profitability and viability of small and medium-sized farms and ranches. The Managers intend for the Department to consider a project’s potential for creating self-employment opportunities in farming and ranching and the likelihood that the project will contribute to conserving and enhancing the quality of land, water, and other natural resources.
Language from the 2003 House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee Report includes:
The Committee is aware the Department (of Agriculture) will develop application and evaluation guidelines for the Value Added Agricultural Product Market Development Grant Program. The Committee expects the Department to develop ranking criteria to reward projects that help increase self-employment and entrepreneurial opportunities in farming and ranching, enhance the profitability and viability of small and medium-sized farms and ranches, and contribute to conserving and enhancing the quality of land, water, and other natural resources.
Both the farm bill and subsequent appropriation bills clearly intended that the VAPG program have broader goals than to increase value added products and markets.
The VAPG program was intended to be an integral part of rural development policy by funding projects that both enhanced farm and ranch incomes and increased self-employment opportunities in rural areas.
As such, it was intended to go beyond other farm income support programs – the VAPG program was anticipated to be part of an asset and wealth-building strategy of American rural development policy.
USDA has not incorporated the congressional language in its funding notices, review process, nor in the program rules, regulations, or program evaluation criteria that award points to proposals.
It is important for the VAPG program, as implemented by USDA, to follow Congress’ direction and to clearly and specifically have stated goals of funding a broad diversity of projects that help increase agricultural producers’ share of the consumer dollar while contributing to broader rural economic opportunities such as self-employment opportunities.
The VAPG program has also struggled in meeting its goals because of funding issues. Through its short existence, the program has suffered a 63 percent decrease in funding (from $40 million to $15 million) and a change in funding status from “mandatory” to “discretionary.” That change in status is important because it has rendered it easier for Congress to cut program spending.
Appropriations for FY2006 are uncertain. The House proposes a major increase for the program at $55 million, and the Senate proposes level funding at $15.5 million. The funding difference awaits resolution by conference committee or other budget action.
Rules and Impact of Public Comments
In 2002, an interim program rule was published for public comment in the Federal Register. A total of 153 public comments were submitted. Out of the 153 comments, 116 comments urged USDA to evaluate proposals based on their contribution to improving “environmental health and sustainability” and “strengthening small and medium-size farms.” Sadly, USDA made no change to reflect those requests.
The June 2004 VAPG program funding notice contained language to evaluate proposals for how they serve small farms. This was a significant victory for family farm and sustainable agriculture advocates of the program. While significant, more work can be done by USDA to target the program not only to small farmers, but also to midsize and beginning farmers/ranchers using stewardship practices.
Center’s Policy Recommendations
To meet the challenges faced by the VAPG program and to allow the program to meet its potential as an asset and wealth-building strategy for rural communities, we outline some of our policy recommendations.
A. For Congress
1. 2007 Farm Bill
- Congress must develop authorizing language placing a high priority for use of the VAPG program grant funds on proposals that are most likely to increase the profitability and viability of small and medium-sized farms and ranches.
- Create a set-aside of no less than 10 percent but up to 15 percent of VAPG program funding for projects concerning beginning farmers and ranchers.
- Target the presidential initiative on bioenergy in the VAPG program to small-scale startup initiatives and to beginning and small and midsized farmers and ranchers.
2. Budget Legislation
- Fully fund the VAPG program at least at its authorized level of $40 million.
- Reinstate the mandatory budget status for the VAPG program.
B. For USDA and the Administration
- Develop a less complicated and more accessible application process.
- Eliminate the “project cost per producer” criteria from the application process. This feature shifts points to projects with high numbers of producers and disadvantages smaller scale projects.
- Include farmers and other end users, including organizations representing sustainable agriculture issues and concerns, in the review and ranking of VAPG program proposals.
- Establish a presidential initiative within the VAPG program that specifically targets proposal evaluation points to increasing income and self-employment opportunities in farming and ranching and that benefit the local economy through social and environmental improvements to the area.
What You Can Do
A strong, effective VAPG program that builds jobs, self-employment opportunities, and assets will be a significant contributor to the revitalization of rural communities and rural economies. As such, we all have a stake in seeing that the VAPG program meets the stated goals of Congress and its potential. As someone committed to the future of rural America you can:
- Urge your U.S. senators and representative to fully fund the Value Added Producer Grant Program at the authorized level of $40 million and reinstate mandatory funding status to the program. You can reach your senators and representatives by calling the U.S. Capitol switchboard at 202.224.3121 and asking to be connected to the appropriate offices.
- Share these policy recommendations with your U.S. senators and representative or write a letter to the editor of your major statewide and local newspapers. At forums held by USDA and members of Congress in preparation for the 2007 farm bill, discuss the VAPG program and how it can be made a better program for rural America.
Contact: Kim Leval, kimleval@qwest.net
or 541.687.1490, or Jon Bailey, jonb@cfra.org
or 402.687.2103 x 1013. Check the Center’s website for the Building Wealth in Rural Communities
publication and a new media toolkit for Telling
the Value Added Story.
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