House Fails to Pass Farm Bill

The U.S. House of Representatives today failed to pass H.R. 1947, the Federal Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2013 by a measure of 195-234.
 

National Sorghum Producers Chairman Terry Swanson, a sorghum farmer from southeast Colorado, released the following statement in response to the bill’s failure to pass.

“National Sorghum Producers is proud of the hard work and leadership put forth by Chairman Frank Lucas, Ranking Member Collin Peterson and their staff in putting forth a fair and equitable bill.
 

"We are disappointed the House was unable to come to an agreement resulting in its passage, but NSP will continue to work with leadership to eventually pass a five-year farm bill."

View the list of amendments, see how Members of Congress voted, and view the final vote.

House Farm Bill Recap

The House debated amendments until midnight last night. Chairman Lucas hoped to guide along legislation before today’s 3:00 p.m. departure time for House legislators by proposing a late night en bloc amendment that included 39 amendments, which were approved by voice vote. The amendment package brought optimism the House would be able to get through all of the amendments before its recess.

Overall, sorghum saw more victories than losses on amendments, but the House’s failure to pass the farm bill is certainly a disappointment. On the final vote, 62 Republicans voted against H.R. 1947 and 24 Democrats supported the bill. 

The House Ag Committee and leadership will now have to regroup and consider alternative means of completing a farm bill.

Senate, House Appropriation Committees Approve Ag Spending Bills

The Senate Appropriations Committee approved an agriculture appropriations bill for fiscal year 2014 today by a vote of 23-6. The bill includes $20.93 billion in discretionary spending, up $420 million from the fiscal year 2013 enacted level. The House Appropriations Committee approved its agriculture spending bill June 13 on a voice vote. The House bill totals $19.5 billion in discretionary spending, which is $1.3 million below the fiscal year 2013 enacted level. While both chamber committees are moving forward, it is unclear when the chambers will conference a budget resolution or appropriations measures. See more from the Senate Committee here and more from the House Committee here.

NSP to Offer Sorghum Insider Program

Sorghum Insider is an exclusive three-day program hosted by the National Sorghum Producers for industry partners, elevators and end-users that will take participants through the U.S. sorghum industry from beginning to end, covering all of the important issues impacting production, policy, markets and much more. Participants will get an insider's look into the new and exciting opportunities on the horizon for sorghum, while gaining a better understanding of how the industry works as a whole. A detailed overview of topics that will be covered during the Sorghum Insider program is available at www.SorghumGrowers.com/sorghuminsider. The deadline to RSVP for program participation is June 28, 2013.

Crop Report

By week’s end, 84 percent of the sorghum crop was planted, 6 percentage points behind last year, but 2 points ahead of the 5-year average. With activity limited to Louisiana and Texas, 18 percent of the nation’s sorghum crop was headed by June 16. This was 6 percentage points behind last year and 2 points behind the 5-year average. Coloring was evident in the Lower Valley region in Texas, while some producers in the Coastal Bend applied Round-Up to ready their fields for harvest. Overall, 53 percent of the sorghum crop was reported in good to excellent condition, compared with 47 percent at the same time last year.
 

Upcoming Sorghum Events

June 22- 28       U.S. Grains Council Hosts Columbia Trade Team
July 7               Weed Management Field Day, Clay Center, Neb.
Aug. 28-30        Sorghum Improvement Conference of North America (SICNA), Lubbock, Texs

Market News - To view this week’s Gulf export grain report, click here.

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Sorghum producers can also receive monthly e-Newsletters from the United Sorghum Checkoff Program. To receive monthly news and information regarding the Sorghum Checkoff’s efforts in sorghum research, education and market development, sign up at www.SorghumCheckoff.com/contact-us. You can also follow the Sorghum Checkoff on Twitter @SorghumCheckoff.

About Sorghum Notes

Sorghum Notes is a publication of the National Sorghum Producers. NSP represents U.S. sorghum producers and serves as the voice of the sorghum industry from coast to coast through education and legislative and regulatory representation. To learn more about NSP, visit our website at www.sorghumgrowers.com. Write to us at National Sorghum Producers, 4201 N Interstate 27, Lubbock, TX 79403. To unsubscribe to Sorghum Notes, please reply to jennifer@sorghumgrowers.com. If you have questions about the sorghum industry or the National Sorghum Producers, please do not hesitate to call NSP at (800) 658-9808. You can also follow NSP on Twitter @SorghumGrowers, and you can find National Sorghum Producers on Facebook