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To
the NASULGC System:
- Board on Agriculture Assembly
- Budget and Advocacy Committee
- Council on Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching
- Council on Governmental Affairs
After marathon sessions spread over three days, the House Committee on Agriculture
has reported its 2007 Farm Bill. As reported to you on July 9 (www.create-21.org/CGA_FBR/2007-07-09.htm)
the land-grant university system was extremely successful in our
pursuit to influence the final version of the Research Title (VII)
and other sections of the bill.
As reported late last night, the House Farm Bill would:
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Provide an expanded program staff for the USDA Under
Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics to be
called the "National Agricultural Research Program Office."
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Consolidate all competitive grant programs at CSREES within
an office to be known as the National Institute for Food and
Agriculture (NIFA).
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Combine existing statutory authorities for the NRI and IFAFS
and provide funding from both appropriations (up to $500
million per year for Fiscal Years 2008 to 2012) and
mandatory sources ($200 million per year for Fiscal Years
2010 to 2012).
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Require that the President’s annual budget submission to
Congress contain "a single budget line item" for all
competitive programs and "a single budget line item" for all
capacity programs at CSREES.
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Renew all of the key research, extension, and education
authorities which expire at the end of Fiscal Year 2007; and
make many of the miscellaneous changes to prior Farm Bill
authorities requested by NASULGC.
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Establish major new research programs (within the new NIFA
structure at CSREES) in bioenergy/biobased products,
specialty crops, organics, and fresh-cut vegetables. In
addition to major new authorizations "for appropriations"
the bill would provide $265 million in mandatory
spending (not subject to annual appropriations) for the
last three of these programs. |
The bill itself and the
committee's report (explanatory language) is still being finalized
by the House Agriculture Committee's professional staff. We will
provide links to those completed products once they are available to
us. In the meantime, we have provided some links that provide
additional details:
LINKS |
