Ag interests court Garamendi's support

U.S. Rep. John Garamendi won't officially represent Colusa and Glenn counties in Congress until Jan. 3, but the Democrat from Walnut Grove knows he has his work cut out for him if he hopes to please his largely conservative, agricultural 3rd District.

Garamendi, who met on Friday with farmers, hunters and conservationists at the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge near Willows, joined the House Agriculture Committee on Nov. 27 to be a part of the final negotiations for the five-year farm bill.

The congressman, along with Minnesota Rep. Collin Peterson, was invited by Ducks Unlimited to hear concerns of those who will be impacted by legislation, particularly the more than $30 billion in proposed cuts to farm subsidies, conservation and nutrition programs.

"The farm bill is in play at the moment, and it's a pretty contentious issue," Garamendi said before the closed meeting.

While Democrats and Republicans in the House have agreed on about $28 billion to $32 billion in cuts, getting to a final agreement on what has to go has proven difficult, Garamendi said.

The bill proposed by the House Agriculture Committee would get half its savings by cutting farm subsidies and conservation, and the other half from the supplemental nutrition assistant program, commonly referred to as food stamps.

The White House want no cuts to the nutrition program, which has stalled progress on the bill's passage, he said.

Garamendi said the program not only feeds the 25 percent of children who go to bed hungry, but provides a market for farmers, whose surplus products are purchased for nutrition programs.

All the cuts could have a significant impact on Glenn and Colusa's rice industry, as well as the natural habitat for the millions of migrating waterfowl who make rice fields and refuges their winter feeding grounds.

The cuts also stand to impact the school lunch and senior nutrition programs.

"It's a lot of money," Garamendi said. "It's a lot of money for the farmers and it's a lot of money for hungry people."

The farm bill has been a staple for local rice farmers since the 1930s.