Deal reached to help dairy and cotton farmers in ag spending bill

Senate Appropriations ranking member Patrick Leahy secured provisions in the fiscal 2018 agriculture spending bill aimed at encouraging more dairy farmers to sign up for an insurance program and to select greater levels of coverage under it. The provisions are part of an agreement brokered with Appropriations Chairman Thad Cochran that helps both dairy and cotton farmers, who are struggling financially amid a sustained period of depressed prices. The total cost of the changes would be $1 billion over 10 years, split between the two commodities.Leahy said the bill would make five changes, including directing the Margin Protection Program to send out indemnities to dairy farmers on a monthly, rather than bi-monthly, basis. The program makes payments to dairy farmers when the difference between the cost of milk and feed drops below certain thresholds. Other changes include reducing premium costs and waiving a $100 administrative fee for "underserved producers," something USDA allows for in other programs, Leahy said.National Milk Producers Federation president and CEO Jim Mulhern said the provision would strengthen MPP and help pave the way for additional improvements to the program in the 2018 farm bill.Senate Agriculture ranking member Debbie Stabenow, who has pushed for a deal that would provide assistance to both dairy and cotton farmers, said in a statement that she will support the spending bill."As I’ve said throughout the appropriations process, all farmers must be considered if we are going to make significant changes to farm bill programs," Stabenow said. "Not only does this bill make important interim improvements to help dairy farmers recover from tough economic times, it also sets the stage to continue repairing the dairy safety net in the farm bill." Congressional appropriators in May almost succeeded in including the provision in the fiscal 2017 omnibus spending package, but that effort fell apart when Senate agriculture lawmakers failed to reach an agreement on how to help dairy farmers.