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Re: another quick way to help prairies (Farm Bill update)

Good answer Cindy.

The only thing that troubles me is the 'it is my understanding' (second hand assurances can be weak and/or purposely misleading - depending on how the assurance originated in the first place) phrase in connection with the NWF characterization that threre is a date of enactment limitation.  Plus, I haven't had a chance to review the Durbin amendment myself.  

Anyway, it would be super to get such legislation to help guard against more prairie coming into production.  

Bill

>>> Grantridge@aol.com 12/06/01 10:48AM >>>
To answer Wayne's question, below is information from someone in the National 
Wildlife Federation.   In brief, if the Durbin amendment is passed as part of 
the Farm Bill, landowners will no longer, after the date of enactment of the 
bill, be able to break out and rowcrop virgin prairies and qualify for 
commodity payments.   Period.   (Unless Congress repeals the Durbin provision 
in some future Farm Bill, that is.)   The same is true for the Harkin CRP 
provision.    So IF we can get the Durbin and Harkin provisions into the new 
Farm Bill, prairies really will be helped.   Please consider calling your 
senators and asking them to support  these provisions.  (Thanks for asking, 
Wayne!)

Cindy

***

RE: Durbin amendment:   It's my understanding that there is a date of 
enactment time limitation on the cropping history.   In other words, the 
cropping history must have been established before enactment of this 
legislation.   So, if someone were to dig and crop new land now, then yes, 
they could get subsidy payments.   But if that person were to dig and crop 
grass with no previous cropping history (1 in 5 or 3 in 10 years) after the 
enactment of the farm bill (assuming it retains this provision), then they 
would be ineligible for commodity payments  (Durbin addresses commodity 
payments, not CRP.)

Re: CRP issue.  Harkin legislation already addresses the CRP issue of forcing 
producers to dig-up because they need a cropping history.   Harkin solves 
this by stating that land eligible for CRP must have a cropping history of 3 
out of 6 years, as of date of enactment.  Thus, new land dug up and cropped 
after date of enactment will not be eligible for CRP. 

***

(Wayne's original question):  I have a question regarding the Durbin 
amendment. If I had a 100 acre prairie couldn't I plow it up, plant it to 
soybeans for one year without any federal payments then qualify for payments 
after that? I know af several cases where land has been broken up and planted 
to a crop for 2 years at a loss in order to qualify for crp payments.    
Wayne Morton 

***

Cindy Hildebrand
grantridge@aol.com 
Ames, IA  50010



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