Today, the Organization for Competitive Markets and Competitive
Markets Action released the following statement in response to U.S.
House Committee on Agriculture Glenn "G.T." Thompson's Farm Bill
made public earlier in the day:
"Chairman's Thompson's Farm Bill is exactly what we expected and
is a direct reflection of the continued corruption in the swamp
that has put countless American family farmers out of business
decade after decade. The measure panders to industrial agriculture
monopolies like the Chinese-owned Smithfield, the National Pork
Producers Council, and the National Cattlemen's Beef Association,
and would nullify countless state laws across the country that
protect the last few remaining independent pork producers in our
nation with its slimmed down version of the EATS Act.
"This corrupt Farm Bill also fails to address the long-standing
unethical practices that we've seen in the USDA's scandal-ridden
Commodity Checkoff Programs that the OFF Act would help prevent,
and we will be lobbying with every resource we have to defeat it.
We call on Speaker Mike Johnson to let this bill die in Committee
and on our champions on the House Freedom Caucus to do everything
in their power to defeat it should it brought to a vote before the
full U.S. House of Representatives. Our producers would be better
off with no new Farm Bill than the swamp thing that was released
today."
OCM and leaders at CMA have worked for most of the past decade
to see the enactment of the Opportunities for Fairness in Farming
(OFF) Act, H.R. 1249/S. 557, led by Reps. Nancy Mace, R-SC, and
Rep. Dina Titus, D-NV, and Sens. Mike Lee, R-UT, Rand Paul, R-KY,
Cory Booker, D-NJ, and Elizabeth Warren, D-MA. The measure would
reform the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture’s scandal-ridden checkoff
programs that have been plagued by unethical and illegal activities
for decades. OFF is backed by more than 200,000 farmers and
ranchers across the country and groups like the American Grassfed
Association, Contract Poultry Growers Association of the Virginias,
National Taxpayers Union, and the Heritage Foundation, as well as
Reps. Thomas Massie, R-KY, Alex Mooney, R-WV, Victoria Spartz,
R-IN, and Mike Lawler, R-NY.
The groups have also lobbied against the so-called Ending
Agriculture Trade Suppression (EATS) Act, H.R. 4417/ S. 2019, led
by Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-IA, and Sen. Roger Marshall, R-KS, that is
designed to nullify state ballot measures across the country
enacted by a direct vote of the people. Industrial agribusiness
interests failed to secure the enactment of similar legislation led
by former Rep. Steve King, R-IA, in the 2018 Farm Bill thanks to
the work of OCM leaders and former House Agriculture Committee
Chairman Mike Conaway, R-TX, who is currently working with the
Competitive Markets Groups on the issue in 2024.
Two Republican-led House letters against EATS previously sent to
Thompson authored by Reps. Andrew Garbarino, R-NY, and Anna Paulina
Luna, R-FL were completely ignored. Those letters were also
cosigned by House Freedom Caucus Chairman Bob Good, R-Va., as
well as Reps. Byron Donalds, R-FL, Matt Gaetz, R-FL, Marjorie
Taylor Greene, R-GA, Nancy Mace, R-SC, Andy Biggs, R-AZ, Matt
Rosendale, R-MT, Jeff Van Drew, R-NJ, Tim Burchett, R-TN, David
Valadao, R-CA, Mike Waltz, R-FL, Alex Mooney, R-WV, Carol Miller,
R-WV, Earl “Buddy” Carter, R-GA, Lance Gooden, R-TX, Mike Lawler,
R-NY, Brian Fitzpatrick, R-PA, Young Kim, R-CA, Mike Garcia, R-CA,
Tom Kean, R-NJ, Jeff Van Drew, R-NJ, Chris Smith, R-NJ, and Vern
Buchanan, R-FL.
The Organization for Competitive Markets (OCM) is a
501(c)(3) non-profit based in Lincoln, Nebraska. The
foundation of the Organization for Competitive Markets is to fight
for competitive markets in agriculture for farmers, ranchers and
rural communities. True competition reduces the need for economic
regulation. Our mission, and our duty, is to define and advocate
the proper role of government in the agricultural economy as a
regulator and enforcer of rules necessary for markets that are
fair, honest, accessible and competitive for all citizens.
Competitive Markets Action (CMA) is a 501(c)(4) non-profit based
in Washington, D.C., that was formed with the mission of shaping
policy to promote more regenerative and sustainable agriculture,
and competitive markets in the U.S., and to defend against attacks
on states' rights by the federal government. CMA works to raise
awareness of the harm caused by multinational conglomerates to the
American family farmer, the consumer and our U.S. economy as a
whole in an effort to bring about legislative and regulatory
reforms.
- House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson
Marty Irby
Competitive Markets Action
202-821-5686
marty@competitivemarketsaction.org