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House Agriculture Committee
Releases
2018 Farm Bill
The House Agriculture Committee last Thursday released the text
of this year's
Farm Bill
, legislation authorizing major
agriculture, conservation, and food safety programs.
Of particular note are decreases to the bill's conservation title, which would be cut by nearly $800 million over the next decade. The bill proposes to combine several key conservation programs for savings, including wrapping the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) into the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), which could save more than $12.6 billion over ten years. While the proposal significantly
increases funding for EQIP at $7.7 billion, it cuts overall conservation funding to working lands programs by about $5 billion over its lifetime, through the elimination
of
programs like CSP (which serves as the largest conservation program by acerage in the country). The proposal directly funds the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) at $250 million a year and increases the Agricultural Conservation Easement (ACE) Program by $2.2 billion over ten years.
The House Agriculture Committee is scheduled to markup its version on Wednesday, April 18th. The Senate has yet to release its own version of the Farm Bill and is unlikely to do so until at least next month. If the House and Senate cannot come to an agreement on a unified bill text, the existing Farm Bill will likely be extended with level funding for another year. A similar extension occurred before that version of the bill passed in 2014. NEMWI will continue to provide additional analysis of the Farm Bill as it continues to move through the legislative process.
For more information, please email Eric Heath, Senior Policy Analyst, Mississippi River Basin Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute at
eheath@nemw.org.
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Proposed Repeal of the Clean Water Rule To Be Detailed
After receiving a flood of public comments from individuals and organizations, including the Northeast-Midwest Institute, the Trump administration has announced that it will give more detail as to why it wants to replace the Obama-era Clean Water Rule.
The Rule essentially determines what bodies of water and wetlands fall under the Clean Water Act's protections. These safeguards include requirements for federal discharge and dredge-and-fill permits, state water quality certifications, and a number of other protective measures.
The Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will not issue a final rule as of now, instead opting to put together another proposal as an addendum to the previous proposal. The addendum will "provide the public with additional clarity on the scope of the agencies' efforts," according to a statement by the two agencies.
NEMWI's comments on the proposed repeal of the Clean Water Rule are available
here and an announcement on the matter is available
here.
For more information, please email Eric Heath, Senior Policy Analyst, Mississippi River Basin Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute at
eheath@nemw.org.
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THIS WEEK ON CAPITOL HILL
The Senate this week could take up the U.S. Coast Guard re-authorization bill (
S. 1129) that was approved by the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee last spring. The bill extends Coast Guard programs and missions such as search and rescue operations, pollution response, and ice breaking. Of particular note to the Great Lakes community, the bill authorizes the construction of a new Great Lakes icebreaker and authorizes a new Coast Guard Center of Expertise for Great Lakes oil spill preparedness and response.
The bill also includes the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act (VIDA), which changes how ballast water discharges from large commercial ships are regulated. VIDA removes EPA's jurisdiction over ballast water regulation under the Clean Water Act, while also preempting any existing state regulations of ballast water discharges. Proponents of VIDA cite the current patchwork of regulations as making it difficult for ship-owners to install on-board ballast water management technologies, while opponents of the bill cite concerns over the potential spread and transfer of aquatic invasive species through ballast water discharges.
The following hearings impacting the region will take place this week:
Tuesday, April 17
- The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Subcommittee will convene a nomination hearing titled, "Nomination Hearing," at 10:00 AM in the Russell Senate Office Building, Room 253.
- The House Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee will convene a hearing titled, "FY2019 United States Coast Guard," at 10:00 AM in the Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2359.
- The Senate Energy and Water Development Subcommittee will convene a hearing titled
"Hearing to review the FY2019 funding request and budget justification for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation within the U.S. Department of the Interior,
" at 2:30 PM in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 430.
- The House Commerce, Justice and Science Subcommittee will convene a hearing titled "FY 2019 Bureau of the Census," at 10:30 AM in H-309, The Capitol.
- The House Agriculture, Rural Development and Food and Drug Administration Subcommittee will convene a hearing titled, " FY2019 Budget U.S. Department of Agriculture," at 1:30 PM in the Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2362.
Thursday, April 19
- The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will convene a hearing titled, "Full Committee Hearing to Examine Rural Energy Challenges and Opportunities," at 10:00 AM, in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 366.
- The House Energy and Water Development Subcommittee will convene a hearing titled, "Energy and Water FY2019 Member Day," at 9:00 AM, in the Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2362-B.
- The House Interior, and Environment Subcommittee will convene for a hearing titled, "Interior FY 2019 Member Day," at 9:00 AM in the Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2007.
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For more information, contact
Matt McKenna,
Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
NEMWI: Strengthening the Region that Sustains the Nation
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