Agriculture

As a former ranch hand and resident in small-town Nebraska, Scott Kleeb has witnessed firsthand the disconnect between the talk in Washington and the reality in rural America. While the 2008 Farm Bill made important steps toward vital reform, Scott believes there is still much more to do to assist new and small farms and ensure a strong global market for American agribusiness.

SUPPORTER OF THE 2008 FARM BILL

Despite the efforts of the Bush Administration and leaders within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to cut protections for farmers - and two presidential vetoes - Congressional leaders from both sides of the aisle came together to put farmers first and ensure that they have the safety net they need. Scott Kleeb strongly supports the measure.

Modernized farm program safety net. This year’s Farm Bill reformed farm income and payment limits to ensure that our farm programs focus on family farmers - not wealthy absentee land owners or corporate farms earning millions of dollars a year. Scott Kleeb believes that the payment formulas and increased transparency in this farm bill are an important first step. Scott will work across the aisle to bring more targeted reform in this area.

Defended crop insurance. Farmers rely on crop insurance to manage their risk and save them from catastrophic economic harm. Yet as the Administration and leaders at USDA were calling for higher crop insurance premiums for farmers, Republicans and Democrats in Congress came together to ensure that this vital program will continue to give farmers the piece of mind they need at a cost they can afford.

Increased funding and support for ethanol. Scott Kleeb knows that ethanol is good for Nebraska’s economy and will help to break our dependence on foreign oil. The Farm Bill extended important tax incentives for ethanol and provided $1 billion to invest in new biofuel technologies such as cellulosic ethanol.

Support and encourage young farmers and ranchers. Young people should not have to leave Nebraska and the agricultural way of life to find meaningful employment opportunities. By assisting young farmers, the Farm Bill can sustain and grow small town America with the promise of future opportunity and prosperity. Scott Kleeb applauds the bipartisan Farm Bill for expanding programs that provide young farmers and ranchers the training and technical assistance they need to succeed.

Permanent disaster relief program. Even as the Midwest battled the devastating effects of a decade-long drought, flood conditions, and tornadoes, the Bush Administration and USDA opposed creating a permanent disaster relief program. Scott Kleeb knows firsthand that the government must offer viable options and protections to those who are supplying the world’s food safest, most abundant food. Scott applauds the bipartisan efforts in Congress that brought about this meaningful and historical change.

Mandatory country-of-origin labeling for meat and produce. Consumers have the right to know where their food comes from, and Scott Kleeb commends Congress for ensuring that the “Made in the USA” sticker is on our home-grown goods. Scott knows that buying American is good for our economy, as well as our farmers and ranchers.

Supporting organic agriculture and local food networks. This year’s Farm bill smartly supports and enhances the rapidly growing organic agricultural industry and locally grown food networks. Scott Kleeb, who sells locally-produced organic beef on the international market, knows that supporting local and organic farms means keeping jobs and farm income right here in Nebraska.

LOOK AHEAD TO THE NEXT FARM BILL

Scott Kleeb believes it’s time to develop a national policy to advance agriculture into the 21st Century. That means ensuring that family farmers and ranchers can make a livable income off their land, encouraging the next generation to enter the agricultural industry, strengthening rural communities, developing home-grown fuel, and stabilizing and securing the global food supply. Scott believes we can accomplish these goals in a bipartisan fashion by starting now to shape the 2013 Farm Bill. To do this, Scott believes we must:

Establish Nebraska Farmers and Ranchers Working Group. Scott Kleeb believes it is critical to ensure that Nebraska’s farming and ranching interests are understood and represented in the Senate. That’s why Scott will immediately create a Nebraska Farmers & Ranchers Working Group comprised of local-agricultural leaders to develop proposals to enhance the 2013 Farm Bill and any technical corrections that may need to occur with our current law.

Establish a crop insurance working group. Similar to the advisory group created by Senators Bob Kerrey and Pat Roberts, Scott Kleeb will assemble a crop insurance working group to reach across party lines to find ways to reduce the cost of insurance rather than raise it. Among the group’s first tasks, Scott will seek ways to improve the APH system for farmers who have had multiple droughts back to back.

Invest in and modernize our infrastructure. Grain harvested in rural America must be picked up by trucks, driven to railcars, and then shipped around the world. Our roads and bridges, especially in rural America, are not keeping pace with our agricultural productivity. Between the increased cost of fuel, state-by-state road regulations that limit what truckers can haul, and the elimination of railroad branch lines, everyone from farmers to shipyard operators are paying more for less. Failure to invest in our infrastructure - especially in rural areas - affects public safety as well. Scott Kleeb believes that we must modernize our critical infrastructure, including roads, bridges, and railways, and bring down the cost of fuel.

Reduce energy costs for farmers and ranchers. Beyond the pain most Americans are feeling at the pump, farmers and ranchers are bearing an additional burden of increased fertilizer and feed costs. Scott Kleeb believes that a comprehensive energy policy is the only way to address the rising cost of fossil fuels and to minimize the increasing burden on farmers and ranchers.

Continue to support ethanol and other biofuels. Biofuels must play a central role in our future energy policy. As we look ahead, Scott believes that we must expand development and research for cellulosic ethanol, as well as improve the efficiency and production of corn-based ethanol. Moreover, Scott believes it is critical to the development and success of biofuel technology that we develop the requisite infrastructure to produce and dispense clean energy.

Create meaningful livestock revenue insurance program. The increased cost of feed has taken its toll on the livestock industry. Scott Kleeb believes the time has come to work with the livestock community to develop a revenue insurance program with benchmarks to measure losses, be it from weather, cost of feed, or price fluctuation of the animal.

Increase flexibility in the CRP. With the call for increased grain production and the need for good conservation practices, Scott Kleeb believes we must take a hard look at the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). Keeping in mind both sound conservation and responsible budget requirements, Scott will bring together agricultural leaders to determine whether early release of environmentally stable lands while maintaining other environmentally challenged lands for a longer period of time would achieve both grain and feed needs and conservation commitments. With better land management to free up prime farm land for agriculture and ensure conservation of important resources, we can both preserve the land for sportsman and guarantee optimum growing potential.

Promote fair trade practices. We continually see American-grown products being blocked from foreign markets. Scott Kleeb believes more must be done to open new markets to U.S. agricultural products, while ensuring that agricultural trade agreements are fair to America’s farmers and ranchers.

Increase support for organic and locally grown products. Scott Kleeb believes we must build on the Farm Bill’s support for and enhancement of the rapidly growing organic agricultural industry. Organic farms and farmers markets keep jobs, food, goods, and commerce in local communities. That’s why Scott supports programs that will help farmers and communities take advantage of these emerging opportunities.

DEVELOP LONG-TERM WATER STRATEGY

From the drought that has plagued the Plains States for nearly a decade to the floods that recently flowed through the Midwest, farmers, communities, and homeowners face significant challenges from water. Scott Kleeb believes we must do more to better predict and address our growing water issues.

Preserving the Ground and Surface Water Conservation Program. The Administration's Farm Bill proposal eliminated the Ground and Surface Water Conservation Program (now called the Agricultural Water Enhancement Program) and instead put it under the EQIP program. Given the water scarcity in Nebraska, this program is essential to help farmers modernize their irrigation systems so they can grow more with less water. Thanks to the hard work of Senator Ben Nelson this program was preserved in the 2008 Farm Bill. As a U.S. Senator, Scott Kleeb will work hard to preserve and strengthen agricultural water conservation programs.

Long-term water planning committee. Scott Kleeb believes that we cannot adequately address our water problems without focusing on the future. That’s why Scott will create a committee of Nebraskans to make recommendations on national water issues.

Conservation efforts. Scott Kleeb knows that conservation is at the crux of the water challenges facing Nebraska and the rest of the nation. Scott is committed to enhancing and encouraging conservation efforts that are practical, affordable, and effective.

Better drought forecast and readiness. Scott Kleeb applauds Senator Nelson for introducing the National Integrated Drought Information System Act that would establish a national center to study and predict droughts in coordination with other organizations, like the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Research and development. Scott Kleeb believes that water and conservation issues must play a central role in research and development. It is critical that we increase funding for research and development of the next generation of irrigation techniques, such as subterranean drips, and developing crops that require less water.

REFORM USDA

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is mandated to oversee agricultural trade and production, food safety, natural resource protection, rural community development, and nutrition. It is critical to all Americans - and all those who depend on U.S. agriculture to meet their food needs - that the USDA conduct its work with the highest level of integrity and effectiveness. Unfortunately, mismanagement and wasteful spending plagued USDA in recent years. To combat this problem, Scott Kleeb will work to:

Demand leadership from USDA. USDA should be an advocate for farmers and ranchers. But our recent USDA leadership seemed more interested in saving money by cutting the vital safety net for farmers and ranchers than assisting hard-working Americans earn a decent living.

Protect consumers and producers. USDA has a responsibility to ensure that our meat, poultry, and milk supplies are safe, and that agricultural producers are protected from foreign pests and diseases. But recent beef recalls and a recent USDA report show that USDA is not adequately protecting producers or consumers. USDA must renew its focus on these vital programs.

Increase oversight of USDA. Scott Kleeb believes we have an obligation to those men and women who work the land and feed the world to ensure that the USDA does not waste limited resources on no-bid contracts, wrong-headed grants and private loan schemes, or luxury travel for USDA officials. That’s why Scott will call for increased review and oversight into USDA’s efforts on behalf of America’s farmers and ranchers.

Review closures of FSA offices. Ten Nebraska Farm Service Agencies were closed by the USDA in Nebraska alone last year, leaving hard-working Nebraskans out of work and forcing farmers in the area to drive 30-50 additional miles to receive basic farm services. In a time of record high gas prices, Scott Kleeb believes we must ensure that farmers and ranchers aren’t additionally burdened by FSA closures.