TPA Joins Coalition Urging Support for Efforts to Curb Crop Insurance Subsidies

The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) has been paying close attention to the government shutdown and the upcoming debt-ceiling deadline that are the main attractions in DC right now, but beyond that there are important issues that elected officials are continuing to hammer out and one of them just won’t go away: the Farm Bill. The Farm Bill remains unfinished business and as of now the work that has been done collectively by the Senate and the House has been nothing short of a disaster, as well as an insult to taxpayers across America. There is a real need and sense for reforms in agriculture policy.  But, TPA has been disappointed in what has taken place so far with the Senate and House versions of the Farm Bill. Now, it has been revealed that the chambers will go to conference on the legislation to put something together between the two and though both versions are flawed this is yet another chance to enact meaningful reforms. One reform in particular is crop insurance and how to reign in the program’s wasteful spending (more than $14 billion last year alone) and the conferees have an opportunity to push for reform to the program. With that in mind, TPA was eager to join a coalition effort led by the R Street Institute, which also included American Commitment, American Conservative Union, Americans for Tax Reform, Campaign for Liberty, Center for Individual Freedom, Coalition to Reduce Government Spending, Council for Citizens Against Government Waste, Cost of Government Center, Less Government, National Taxpayers Union, and Taxpayers for Commonsense sending this letter urging conferees to “insist upon inclusion of a means test for crop insurance subsidies.” The currently passed versions of the Farm Bill from the House and Senate are highly unpalatable but when opportunities to protect taxpayers and lessen their burden on legislation that is almost certain to become law, the effort must be made to ensure those opportunities are met with action!

Read the full letter below:

October 11, 2013

Dear Representative,

On behalf of the millions of members and supporters of the undersigned organizations, we write in strong support of a Sense of the House of Representatives instructing farm bill conferees to insist upon inclusion of a means test for crop insurance subsidies. By putting its support behind Senate-passed language (sponsored by Senators Coburn and Durbin) to reduce by 15 percentage points the crop insurance premium subsidy paid to farmers with adjusted gross incomes over $750,000, the House can help save taxpayers nearly $1 billion. While this would still fall far short of the scope of reforms needed for the farm bill, it would at least introduce some restraint to the subsidized crop insurance program that currently has no limits whatsoever.

Crop insurance is in dire need of reform. It cost more than $14 billion last year and is projected to be more than twice as expensive as the traditional commodity subsidy programs over the next decade. Furthermore, a huge portion of premium subsidies are swallowed up by the wealthiest and most successful farm operations. The top 20 percent of agribusinesses received a staggering 73 percent of subsidy dollars in 2011.

The farm bill process thus far has been a shameful exercise in client politics devoid of the significant changes that would make it worthy of the word “reform.” That the House is reduced to supporting incredibly modest tweaks to crop insurance is evidence of that fact. Given record farm incomes, the time will never be better to trim farm handouts to the wealthy and crop insurance must be the first step.

This Sense of the House cannot solve all of the farm bill’s problems, such as the fact that it contains government-set target prices, new special interest handouts, new income guarantee entitlements, and expanded subsidies for federal crop insurance. However, it is one common sense step toward reining in costly crop insurance and saves taxpayer money in doing so. We urge you to support its passage.

Sincerely,

Andrew Moylan, R Street Institute

Phil Kerpen, American Commitment

Al Cardenas, American Conservative Union

Grover Norquist, Americans for Tax Reform

John Tate, Campaign for Liberty

Jeff Mazzella, Center for Individual Freedom

Jonathan Bydlak, Coalition to Reduce Government Spending

Tom Schatz, Council for Citizens Against Government Waste

Mattie Duppler, Cost of Government Center

Seton Motley, Less Government

Duane Parde, National Taxpayers Union

Ryan Alexander, Taxpayers for Common Sense

David Williams, Taxpayers Protection Alliance