B&C Commends Stabenow, Cochran on Farm Bill

The Boone and Crockett Club is commending U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and U.S. Senator Thad Cochran (R-Mississippi) for their work on the Conservation and Forestry titles of the 2013 Farm Bill. Yesterday, with broad bipartisan support, the Senate Agriculture Committee, which Stabenow chairs, approved a bill that features reforms seen as beneficial to conservation in America.

The U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry voted 15-5 to advance the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2013, a Farm Bill authored by Committee Chairwoman Senator Debbie Stabenow and Ranking Member Senator Thad Cochran.  The measure will now go to the full Senate for consideration.

"Members of the Boone and Crockett Club have been working on the Farm Bill since it was conceptualized. We are pleased the bill reduces federal expenditures. It targets conservation to key forest, grassland, wetland and other wildlife habitats. And this is a direct result of Chairwoman Stabenow and Ranking Member Cochran's hard work. The Club greatly appreciates the common sense, balanced approach these two great senators were able to achieve," said William (Bill) Demmer, president of the Club.    
The bill will yield a total of over $23 billion dollars in spending cuts, provides certainty to agriculture and improves wetland, grassland, forest and wildlife programs.  

Upon the passing of the bill, Stabenow said, "We look forward to continuing to work with our colleagues in a bipartisan way to enact a Farm Bill this year before the current extension expires. Agriculture supports 16 million jobs in this country, and it's absolutely critical to provide farmers the certainty they need to plan and grow by passing a Farm Bill this year."

Cochran stated, "We have tried to be fair to those affected by the bill, as well as to those who pay the bill."

The Club is especially appreciative that the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP), which Cochran authored in 1996, is continued, as well as the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP). WHIP has helped install wildlife projects on 6,586,955 acres with 37,547 different landowners. WRP has restored almost 2.8 million acres with almost 12,000 private landowners. 

To view a copy of the bill, amendments accepted by the Committee, a title-by-title summary and other details, click the link below:
http://www.ag.senate.gov/issues/farm-bill