Ag Council, Crawford meet with area farmers

The Agricultural Council of Arkansas held its board meeting last week at the Lon Mann Cotton Research Sta tion in Marianna, where members heard updates on new federal legislation and discussed challenges facing the state’s farmers. The nonprofit, member-led council is made up of farmers, landowners and agricultural businesses. It works to advo cate for family farms and rural communities across Arkansas, according to the agency’s website. Dr. Hunter Biram, assis tant professor of agricultural economics and agribusiness at the University of Arkansas and an extension economist with the UA System Division of Agriculture, served as guest speaker. He outlined key provisions in the recently approved OB3 Reconciliation Package, often referred to as the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which was signed into law on July 4. Biram noted the legisla tion includes several policy updates that directly affect producers through farm bill programs related to com modities, conservation, insur ance and trade. “Overall, you will see a 10 to 20 percent increase in the statutory reference price for the PLC, or price loss cover age, program,” Biram explained. “The ARC coverage level has also been raised to 90 percent at what I think is a 12.5 percent rate and farm ers can now enroll ARC and SCO on the same acre.” U.S. Congressman Rick Crawford also joined the meeting, hosting a roundtable to hear concerns directly from farmers. “I’m acutely aware of the issues you’re dealing with,” Crawford told those in atten dance. “I’ve spent the last few weeks texting back and forth with you and your colleagues on these topics that you are dealing with and that Hunter (Dr. Biram) is now analyzing. I think you all know the eco nomic analysis. I wish I had better news.” Crawford acknowledged the challenges Congress has faced in advancing a new farm bill but pointed to the recent legislation as a step forward. “We’ve struggled with the farm bill – that’s the bad news,” he said. “The good news is that the One Big Beautiful Bill did a lot of the heavy lifting to address those challenges.” Crawford shared with the group that he has been work ing to advocate for real time relief for farmers in Washing ton with the understanding that new legislation would take months to provide such relief to farmers. “I have lost faith in the PLC program, I wasn’t crazy about it to begin with,” said Crawford. “It’s fundamentally flawed, we make adjustments to the reference prices that you need now, and you won’t see for another 12 to 18 months. “Over the last week, I’ve been pinging everyone I know, including in the White House, to see if we can take some of this tariff driven revenue and drive that out, much like the MFP like we did in 2017, something to provide some real time relief,” Crawford continued. Those attending the meeting shared their con cerns about the current trade market and issues need additional legislation. Lawmakers around the country are currently work ing to put together what they call a “skinny” farm bill to introduce in the fall ses sion. The current 2018 farm bill is set to expire at the end of September. with domestic hiring. Despite these gains with the new legislation, con cerns remain among local farmers. According to economists, payment caps could restrict how much larger operations actually receive and some agricultural programs, such as conservation initiatives, rural development funding and dairy supports still “What we are doing right now is not working,” said Crawford. “We need to think differently.

Ag Council, Crawford meet with area farmers

Fall cleanup day scheduled

State awards funds to FCSD to help improve student scores

City departments directors provide quarterly updates

Hilary Trickey

Related Posts

Fall cleanup day scheduled

State awards funds to FCSD to help improve student scores

City departments directors provide quarterly updates

SFC Fair to feature full schedule for families to enjoy on Saturday

Mayor promotes sales tax to replace city’s millage rate

Operation Christmas Child drive underway

Jurors to report Thursday

No Burn Permits to be issued

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

Archives

Categories

Recent Posts

Welcome Back!

Retrieve your password

Ag Council, Crawford meet with area farmers

RELATED POSTS

Membership Required

Related Posts

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

Archives

Categories

Recent Posts

Welcome Back!

Retrieve your password