PHOENIX\u2014 The House Agriculture Committee is diligently working on a new Farm Bill, which Committee Chairman Mike Conaway (R-TX) hopes will receive a vote in the House of Representatives before the end of March.<\/p>\n
Conaway, who addressed the crop insurance industry\u2019s annual convention today, said that would leave plenty of time to work out differences with the Senate version of the bill and ensure new legislation is finalized before the Farm Bill expires at the end of September.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will have difficult decisions to make,\u201d he said, noting that there is \u201cno reason to put it off just because [the debate] will be hard.\u201d<\/p>\n
Conaway said the bill leaving his committee will include a strong crop insurance component, and he will work to fight off attempts to weaken crop insurance.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur mantra is \u2018don\u2019t screw up crop insurance,\u2019\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n
Conaway\u2019s support was music to the ears of crop insurers, who believe their track record under the current Farm Bill is noteworthy.\u00a0 Tom Zacharias, president of National Crop Insurance Services, outlined these successes during his opening remarks at the meeting.<\/p>\n
\u201cFarmers have spent nearly $15 billion in premiums since 2014,\u201d Zacharias said.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019ve also shouldered more than $30 billion in deductibles.\u201d<\/p>\n
Because farmers help pay into the system, taxpayers aren\u2019t left footing the whole bill after a disaster strikes.\u00a0 That helps explain why crop insurance costs are below budget.<\/p>\n
Congressional Budget Office projections for crop insurance are down nearly $10 billion since the 2014 Farm Bill was enacted.<\/p>\n
Zacharias said the industry has also invested heavily in improving efficiency and stamping out waste under the current Farm Bill.<\/p>\n
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