Posted December 18, 2013
Representative Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) has suggested
that House Democrats should not pass the farm bill unless the savings are used
to extend unemployment benefits, according to an MSNBC article available here.
Rep. Van Hollen said, “Under no circumstances should we
support the farm bill unless Republicans agree to use the savings from it to
extend unemployment insurance.”
The House and Senate conference committee are currently
negotiating the final version of the farm bill and recent
reports suggest that a bill will be ready in January. While the House did not extend unemployment
benefits, which will expire on Dec. 28, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid
(D-NV) has indicated that this will be one of the top issues for the Senate
next year.
House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) said that he would
only support an extension “as long as it’s paid for and as long as there are other
efforts that will help get our economy moving once again.”
Rep. Van Hollen suggests that extending unemployment
insurance for another year, which would cost $25 billion, could be paid for
with the estimated $24 billion in savings over the next decade from the farm
bill.
This idea could possibly pique the interest of others in
Congress. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
said recently that, in Congress, there is not much interest in the farm bill
outside of the lawmakers who are members of the House and Senate Agriculture
committees, according to an article by the Des Moines Register available here.
For more information on farm bills, please visit the
National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
