The Washington Post reported that the not-very-reformed-at-all version of the Farm Bill was approved last Thursday and the full House is expected to vote on it next week.
Bread for the World president David Beckmann said, "Neither of the two bills presented by Chairman Peterson shows marked improvement for farmers of modest means or for the millions of hungry and poor families in this country and around the world.
As usual, people who need help the most are at the bottom of the priority list. Without a guaranteed source of funding for federal nutrition programs, the 'reform' option is no more than a wish list."
The farm bill is expected to go to the House floor before the August recess, perhaps as early as July 24. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, has said that his committee will also take up the farm bill in July. So your members of Congress – whether or not they sit on an agriculture committee – need to hear now from their constituents that the version of the farm bill which comes to the House and Senate floors must contain improvements.
To take action, please see the web site http://www.bread.org/take-action/take-action-seeds-of-change.html for information on how to call your members of Congress. If you choose to write a letter, faxing is a better option due to time constraint!
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