Tom Harkin - News

Harkin Visits Area to View Flood Damage

2008-06-30T14:17:00Z

OTTUMWA — Sen. Tom Harkin showed up in Ottumwa on Sunday to view the still-swollen Des Moines River.

Harkin is on a multi-city tour of disaster areas. They’re not hard to find in Iowa right now. Of Iowa’s 99 counties, 83 are declared state disaster areas. Many of those have also received federal designation.

Ottumwa, where the river is still at more than 16.5 feet, was the third stop after Parkersburg and Oskaloosa. Levees and sandbags controlled the river within Ottumwa city limits, but there are some hard-hit areas just outside town.

Harkin stood for several minutes by a pump in the Market Street parking lot, where a huge mound of sand still sits ready for bagging should the river defy expectations and rise again. Public Works Director Larry Seals had a specific request for the senator’s help.

By MATT MILNER | Courier Staff Writer

Read the original story at The Ottumwa Courier

OTTUMWA — Sen. Tom Harkin showed up in Ottumwa on Sunday to view the still-swollen Des Moines River.

The pumps move water out of the sewers, since the overflows on the river are shut tight to keep water from backing up into them. The city is in the middle of a major project to update and separate the city’s sewer system, and Seals told Harkin that some of the upgrades could remove the need for the pumps that are now scattered around Ottumwa.

The project relies heavily on state and federal funding. That’s where Harkin comes in.

“If there’s any way we could do just a $5 million project ahead of schedule,” it would help, Seals said.

“Make sure I get the figures on jump starting the storm sewer project,” Harkin said, turning to his aide. “Another thing I’ve just got to be sure to put into the mix.”

Harkin spent a few minutes speaking with area officials, including members of the Ottumwa City Council, Wapello County supervisors, and the mayor of Eddyville before getting into a city bus for a tour of the flooding. He said it’s a very different picture than in 1993.

Still, he said, “Ottumwa dodged a bullet.”

Harkin Faults Bush for Intent to Veto Budget Bill

2008-06-30T13:24:00Z

Sen. Tom Harkin this morning criticized President Bush’s intention to veto a substantial education, health and labor bill, calling the president “the odd person out.”

In a conference call with Iowa reporters, Harkin described a bill that would raise funding for biomechanical research by $1 billion, boost appropriations for child health centers by $150 million, spend $50 million more to address a backlog in Social Security disability claims, increase funding for colorectal exams for low-income persons by $25 million and raise allocations for school repairs by $6 million.

Harkin said the bill passed a Senate subcommittee without a dissenting vote and he expected full committee passage.

By BUTCH HEMAN | Staff Writer

Read the original story at The Daily Times Herald

Sen. Tom Harkin this morning criticized President Bush’s intention to veto a substantial education, health and labor bill, calling the president “the odd person out.”

Harkin said the bill passed a Senate subcommittee without a dissenting vote and he expected full committee passage.

Saying Senate Democrats had exceeded their budget request by $9.5 billion, Bush said he would veto the measure. Harkin doubts enough senators would vote to override.

“We are moving forward in Congress. We are,” Harkin remarked. “It’s just that the president seems to be the odd man out.”

On other budget issues, Harkin said he hopes the Senate acts on a supplemental funding bill before it adjourns for a two-week Independence Day break on Friday. The package includes $2.65 billion for flood relief.

“But I just don’t know if we can get it done. It might take until the second week of July” when the Senate resumes the 2008 session, Harkin added. “It’s just a shame we can’t get that thing done.”

With roughly half of the estimated $8 billion in U.S. crop damage from spring flooding occurring in Iowa, Harkin was asked about federal assistance. The Department of Agriculture has stated it will take double the $50 billion earmarked by Congress to get the new farm bill off the ground.

Harkin didn’t find fault with the USDA’s assessment but pointed out that the department has had three directors during the Bush administration and remarked, “This (farm bill) didn’t happen overnight. They’ve known it was coming for a long time. They’ve never asked for sufficient funds through the farm bill. They’d better get a better handle on it. If they want more money, then they should come up here and ask for an emergency appropriation, and we’ll honor that. But where are they?”“

Harkin said the new farm bill “has plenty of safety-net protection” for Iowa farmers affected by recent flooding.

The four-term senator might have fired a shot across Bush’s bow regarding the budget, but he did have mild praise for the president this morning. Bush announced today he will lift trade sanctions against North Korea and remove it from the U.S. terrorist blacklist – a striking turn in diplomacy regarding a communist regime Bush once described as being part of the “axis of evil.”

“I’m encouraged by this,” said Harkin. “But we could’ve done this a long time ago by having negotiations and constant diplomacy rather than saber rattling. But better late than never.

“I hope this will lead to a North Korea that’s an open member of the international community.”

Iowa will emerge stronger than ever

2008-06-14T11:35:00Z

My thoughts and prayers go out to the tens of thousands of Iowans around the state who have had to evacuate their homes and businesses due to the severe weather damage and record flooding in communities and neighborhoods across our state. In addition, my heart and my sincere sympathies go out to the victims, families and friends of the boy scouts who were affected by the tornado that swept through the Little Sioux Scout Ranch near Turin.

The news that we lost four young boy scouts was both shocking and heartbreaking. My thoughts and prayers are with the families who are grieving for their children. The teamwork and the swift disaster preparedness skills deployed by the boy scouts and local officials responding to the incident helped lessen the impact of that disaster, and for that I am grateful.

Since the tornado hit Little Sioux Scout Ranch, large parts of Iowa have experienced immense flooding that has forced communities in Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, and Des Moines to evacuate. My thoughts and prayers are also with these Iowans and I hope that their displacement is not prolonged and that they are able to return with their homes and businesses largely intact.

I am touring our state with our Congressional Delegation and with officials from the Federal Emergency Management Administration to help coordinate relief efforts and I am confident that Iowa will emerge from this natural disaster stronger than ever. I know this because I have seen the strength of our communities as they have banded together to endure the devastation. Soon the waters will recede and we will begin the process of rebuilding and I will make sure that the federal government plays a robust role to help Iowans recover and rebuild.

Iowans affected by recent tornadoes and floods are urged to call the 24-hour Iowa Concern Hotline for financial and emotional assistance at (800) 447-1985.

Citizens who want to donate monetarily to help the victims of the storms can do so through service organizations including, but not limited to: Red Cross, United Way, and the Salvation Army.

Due to the immense flooding and storm damage in Iowa, I have postponed the voting deadline for the final round of our “Building Blue ” contest for Iowa State House and State Senate candidates. The contest – and the final round of balloting – will now run through the end of the month.

Please keep our fellow Iowans in your thoughts and prayers and please support them if you are able.

I know Iowa will emerge from the floods of 2008 stronger than ever.

Senator Tom Harkin

Bush Seeks $275 Million for U.S. Food, Drug Safety

2008-06-12T02:39:00Z

By JUSTIN BLUM, Bloomberg

June 10 (Bloomberg)—The Bush administration increased its budget request for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration by $275 million after the agency’s commissioner told Congress that more funding was needed to protect against unsafe products.

The money would augment $2.4 billion previously sought by President George W. Bush for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1, said U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt in a conference call with reporters yesterday. More resources are needed to police food, drugs and medical devices, Leavitt said.

Lawmakers have criticized the FDA’s performance after the blood thinner heparin was found to have a contaminated ingredient from China. The FDA commissioner, Andrew von Eschenbach, wrote a letter last month to Senator Arlen Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania, saying the agency needed $275 million to beef up inspections of manufacturers.

By JUSTIN BLUM, Bloomberg

The products regulated by the FDA ``are essential and critical to the welfare of every single American,’’ said Von Eschenbach during the same conference call.

The extra funding will allow the FDA to conduct at least 1,000 additional overseas inspections of plants producing food and medical products imported into the U.S., and 1,000 more domestic plant reviews than are carried out now, according to a statement from Leavitt’s department.

Money also will be used to station FDA employees in China and elsewhere, and to improve the agency’s computer tracking systems.

``This increase will allow FDA to continue to transform its regulatory strategies to meet the challenges of the evolving global marketplace,’’ Leavitt said in a statement.

`Long Overdue’

Senator Tom Harkin, an Iowa Democrat, said the spending proposal was ``long overdue.’‘

``Congress has asked FDA repeatedly if additional funding was needed to carry out its mission and ensure the safety of our food and drug supply,’’ Harkin said in an e-mailed statement. ``Finally, FDA presents a more accurate budget picture so that Congress knows what needs to be done.’‘

The value of imported medicine and drug compounds reached $48.9 billion last year, up more than 30-fold from $1.57 billion in 1990, according to the Census Bureau.

In February, Bush proposed increasing the FDA’s budget for next year by 5.7 percent to $2.4 billion. Congress must approve the FDA budget.

Representative John D. Dingell a Democrat from Michigan who is chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said at a hearing in April that von Eschenbach wasn’t doing his job and hadn’t asked for enough money to inspect overseas drugmakers.

Finger-Pointing

Dingell pointed his finger at von Eschenbach and repeatedly asked the FDA chief how much it would cost to do more inspections. Dingell objected when the commissioner didn’t provide specifics.

Last month, Senator Specter wrote von Eschenbach asking how much additional funding the agency needed. The commissioner replied in a letter, saying that $275 million was needed based on ``my professional judgment.’‘

The funds requested yesterday include $125 million to protect the food supply, $100 million for the safety of drugs and medical devices and $50 million to prepare the FDA’s workforce and laboratories for ``areas of emerging science’’ such as nanotechnology and gene therapies, according to the statement.

To contact the reporter on this story: Justin Blum in Washington at jblum4@bloomberg.net.

Harkin endorses Obama, says he has good shot at winning Iowa

2008-06-07T00:20:00Z

DES MOINES, Iowa – U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin predicted Wednesday that Barack Obama has a solid shot at winning Iowa’s seven electoral votes this fall in an election that’s shaping up well for Democrats.

Harkin, who is seeking his fifth Senate term, said he expects Obama and other Democrats to fare well in a general election he speculated could see the party’s largest gains in more than 30 years.

“It sure feels that way. It feels a lot like when I first came in in 1974, when I won that Republican district out in southwest Iowa,” said Harkin, referring to his first of five House terms. “We brought in 75 Democrats that year and it feels a lot like that now, in terms of registration, people who are saying they want big change.”

By MIKE GLOVER | AP Political Writer

Read the original story at The Chicago Tribune

Harkin, who is seeking his fifth Senate term, said he expects Obama and other Democrats to fare well in a general election he speculated could see the party’s largest gains in more than 30 years.

Harkin was among a group of eight formerly uncommitted Democratic senators who announced their endorsements of Obama, a signal to rival Hillary Rodham Clinton that the race is over.

“Senator Clinton has to make up her own mind, but we are hopeful that will happen very soon,” Harkin said. “I’ve got to believe that uppermost in her mind is what she can do to help pull this party together.”

With the focus shifting toward the general election, Harkin argued that Obama’s intense campaigning in Iowa leading to the state’s leadoff precinct caucuses will pay off in the race against Republican John McCain.

“I think Barack Obama is one of the most inspiring politicians I’ve ever met,” said Harkin. “He brought a lot of young people in and he brought a lot of independents. I witnessed that first-hand at the caucuses.”

While McCain competed in the caucuses, his Iowa campaign was far more limited than Obama’s all-out effort.

In addition, Harkin noted that Obama is from Illinois and neighboring politicians traditionally do well in Iowa.

“I think Barack Obama can carry the state,” said Harkin. “It’s not a slam dunk. He’s got to work hard.”

Obama has already indicated he will focus on Iowa, where he held a high-profile outdoor rally last month on a night when he earned a majority of the pledged delegates.

Harkin said he’ll try to deliver as many of his supporters to the polls as possible, a move that will help him return to the Senate and help Obama carry the state.

“My role is to do anything I can to get re-elected and to get my voters out,” said Harkin. “The better we do at the local level, county offices, the better we are. The best thing I can do is to campaign and do everything I can to win election.”

Harkin is well positioned to do just that. Political newcomer Christopher Reed on Tuesday won a razor-thin Republican primary for the right to oppose Harkin. He hasn’t sought public office before, is not widely known and Federal Election Commission records show no fundraising activity on his part.

Harkin has raised $4.8 million, and has won every election he’s contested since 1974.

Adding to the momentum, Iowa Democrats have built an 80,000-person edge in registered voters.

Still, Harkin said Democrats must work to do to take advantage of political winds blowing in their direction.

“In politics, if the wind is blowing and you don’t put up your sail, you’re dead in the water,” he said.

Mills County U.S. 34 bridge improvements get a boost

2008-06-04T01:35:00Z

Sen. Tom Harkin announced Friday that the Iowa Department of Transportation received $226,308 to work on approaches for the new U.S. Highway 34 bridge, including work on the U.S. 34 and Interstate 29 interchange in Mills County.

Read the original article at The Daily Nonpareil

“Providing investments in our infrastructure will help improve our transportation system and give a welcome boost to Iowa’s economy,” Harkin said. The funds have been provided through a combination of congressionally directed funds and state DOT support over many years to make this project possible.

“These essential funds will improve transportation in southwest Iowa and hopefully will help attract companies to the area,” Harkin added.

Harkin has been a long time supporter of this project and is a senior member of the panel that funds transportation initiatives.

Farm Bill, Facing Veto, Goes to Bush

2008-05-16T13:53:00Z

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Thursday approved a five-year, $307 billion farm bill with wide bipartisan support, virtually sealing President Bush’s defeat in a battle over agriculture policy.

Mr. Bush has promised to veto the bill because he says it would not do enough to limit subsidies at a time of record grain prices. His advisers said Thursday that he had every intention of making good on that vow.

By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN, New York Times

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Thursday approved a five-year, $307 billion farm bill with wide bipartisan support, virtually sealing President Bush’s defeat in a battle over agriculture policy.

The Senate vote, 81 to 15, with 35 Republicans in favor, guarantees an easy override of a veto. The House passed the bill on Wednesday, 318 to 106, also far more than the two-thirds needed to overturn a veto.

Although the measure is universally known as the farm bill, it has far more money to feed the poor, including $209 billion for nutrition programs like food stamps and food banks, according to the Congressional Budget Office, compared with $35 billion for agricultural commodity programs.

“This is a great day for America, not just for farmers and ranchers,” said Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa and chairman of the Agriculture Committee, who noted that the bill included money for healthy snacks for schoolchildren, for land conservation and rural development and for producing alternative fuel like ethanol made from switchgrass and other plant matter.

“This is really a farm bill for everyone,” Mr. Harkin said. “I am still hopeful the president will sign it.”

The White House said that there was no reason for lawmakers to be hopeful and that Mr. Bush would veto the bill when he returned from a Middle East trip.

“We will continue to make the case with lawmakers why it is bad for Americans,” said Scott Stanzel, a White House spokesman.

Mr. Bush’s objections include the failure of the bill to do enough to limit subsidies, which he has said are difficult to justify in such flush times for producers.

The administration had sought an income cap of $200,000 above which farmers could not qualify for farmer-subsidy payments. The bill sent by Congress limits farm income to $750,000 and non-farm income to $500,000.

The $750,000 limit would apply just to so-called direct payments that are disbursed based on acreage, regardless of market conditions or whether the land is actively farmed. The $500,000 limit applies to all programs.

Currently, there is no limit on farm income to qualify for payments. The limit on non-farm income is $2.5 million.

Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, the senior Republican on the agriculture panel, said Congress would override a veto.

“Obviously, I have been very disappointed in the comments coming out of the White House,” Mr. Chambliss said. “But we do have a strong vote in both the House and the Senate, and I think that shows you that in a complex piece of legislation like this, and it truly is because it touches so many different areas of so many different aspects of agriculture and food production, as well as nutrition and conservation and energy, that there is something in this bill for every member of the House and every member of the Senate.”

Bush set to veto $300 billion farm bill

2008-05-09T18:05:00Z

Administration officials have dashed hopes among farm-state lawmakers from both parties that President Bush will sign a nearly $300 billion farm bill that they finished Thursday.

The veto warning sets up an effort by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, joined by many farm-state Republicans, to override a veto and defend government payments to farmers earning record incomes even as food prices soar.

Read the original article at The San Francisco Chronicle.

Administration officials have dashed hopes among farm-state lawmakers from both parties that President Bush will sign a nearly $300 billion farm bill that they finished Thursday.

Administration officials said the bill, which would set U.S. food policy for the next five years, is loaded with budget gimmicks that disguise a $20 billion increase in spending.

“At a time of record farm income, Congress decided to further increase farm subsidy rates, qualify more people for taxpayer support, and move programs toward more government control,” Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer said.

Schafer dismissed lawmakers, including Republicans, pushing to override the veto. “The same people stand up and say they’re against corporate welfare and tax cuts for the rich,” he said. “I have visited face to face with our president and he was direct and plain. The president will veto this bill.”

Lawmakers have wrestled for months to expand subsidies to farmers while also boosting conservation and nutrition programs – plus creating first-ever supports for California’s fruit and vegetable growers – to get a bill that can appease everyone and ostensibly meet budget limits.

Income limits

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Colin Peterson, D-Minn., and other farm-state lawmakers hailed as a historic reform a new ban on government payments to farmers who earn more than $750,000 a year and landowners who more earn than $500,000.

But Ferd Hoefner, policy director of the Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, said that under the proposed new limits, a married couple could earn up to $2.5 million and still qualify for government farm payments.

Most of the spending in the bill goes to food stamps, school lunches and other nutrition programs that will receive a $10.4 billion increase. Farm subsidies will cost about $40 billion a year, Peterson said.

Other provisions boost protection for sugar producers, expand tax breaks for thoroughbred racehorses and add subsidies for several crops, all part of an effort to corral support from a broad swath of lawmakers, each with their own interests.

Republican lawmakers from the House and Senate Agriculture committees met with Bush at least twice over the last week to urge him to sign the bill, which lawmakers think is an election-year bonanza for both parties.

Subsidy reform

Bush allied instead with a coalition of environmental, overseas development and taxpayer groups pushing for greater reform of farm subsidies, which affect U.S. diets and promote greater concentration of agriculture among large producers. Bay Area farm and food groups wanted to shift money away from payments to big grain producers and direct policy to support more nutritious and locally grown foods and more environmentally friendly farming practices.

“Faced with a mounting food crisis at home and abroad, Congress had the opportunity through the farm bill to shift funds from wasteful agricultural subsidies for large-scale farms to food aid to meet the needs of the poor,” said Raymond Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America, an overseas poverty and development group. “But instead, congressional leaders settled on a bill that will continue to be costly to taxpayers, undermine our rural economy, damage our trade relationships and hurt the world’s poorest farmers.”

Pelosi has relied on Peterson, a staunch supporter of subsidies, to shepherd the bill through Congress, hoping to aid Democrats in rural districts.

Pelosi said Thursday the bill contains “significant reform” in farm supports and praised the $1.3 billion lawmakers said they included in marketing aid to fruit and vegetable growers, which she said is “a special interest to me in California.” She said her chief interest was the increase in spending on food stamps, food banks and other nutrition programs.

The bill was mostly hammered out over months of negotiations in a closed-door conference committee and primarily among farm-state lawmakers. Negotiators bent over backward to preserve crop subsidies and add a big new “permanent disaster” program, while doling out money to appease environmental and nutrition interests. Some environmental programs were targeted to save money, though overall spending on conservation spending increased.

California Sen. Barbara Boxer became so concerned about several environmental provisions that she put a hold on the bill last week, blocking action, said her spokeswoman Natalie Ravitz.

“As pieces started to leak out of the conference committee we became more and more concerned,” Ravitz said. These included changes to a Wetlands Reserve Program in the Sacramento area to protect migratory bird flyways and a provision on pesticides that could have had the federal government discouraging the use of safer pest-management approaches such as organic farming and integrated techniques that rely on crop rotation and other natural methods of control.

Hold was effective

Blocking the bill “put out a message about how serious we were, and we got their attention,” Ravitz said.

Peterson had tried to put payment limits and other restrictions on conservation programs, drawing a parallel between crop subsidies and conservation. Environmental groups objected, arguing that conservation programs have a public benefit, whereas payments to growers of corn, wheat and other subsidized crops have no public benefit and may do considerable public harm. Boxer largely blocked Peterson’s effort. She also secured a new research program for honeybees and other pollinators in sharp decline, though the program will require funding.

Boxer, who has taken the hold off the bill, said she was pleased that the negotiators restored several of the environmental provisions. “We need to encourage, not restrict, participation in conservation programs such as those that help us restore and protect our wetlands, clean our air and conserve and improve our water resources,” Boxer said.

Harkin: Farm Bill Good for Iowa

2008-05-07T14:59:00Z

By Laura Andrews, Globe Gazette

“This is a good bill. It’s good for Iowa, good for production, good for conservation,” said Harkin.

MASON CITY — U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said Monday he’s pleased with the new farm bill passed by a congressional conference committee after a marathon session last Thursday.

However, gaining President Bush’s favor is another matter. Bush is threatening to veto the legislation unless it substantially cuts subsidies to the nation’s wealthiest farmers.

This version of the bill still needs to be approved by the full House and Senate.

“We have it finished,” Harkin said at a news conference at the Mason City Municipal Airport. “This is a good bill. It’s good for Iowa, good for production, good for conservation.”

By Laura Andrews, Globe Gazette

“This is a good bill. It’s good for Iowa, good for production, good for conservation,” said Harkin.

MASON CITY — U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said Monday he’s pleased with the new farm bill passed by a congressional conference committee after a marathon session last Thursday.

However, gaining President Bush’s favor is another matter. Bush is threatening to veto the legislation unless it substantially cuts subsidies to the nation’s wealthiest farmers.

This version of the bill still needs to be approved by the full House and Senate.

“We have it finished,” Harkin said at a news conference at the Mason City Municipal Airport. “This is a good bill. It’s good for Iowa, good for production, good for conservation.”

Harkin said the cut in subsidies to wealthy farmers is a beginning.

“It has cut down on it a lot,” Harkin said. “Is it as far as I would like it to go? No, but we didn’t have the votes to.”

Harkin said only 5 percent of subsides will go to the nation’s wealthiest farmers.

The new bill will also give farmers a better safety net, he said. The Average Crop Revenue Election (ACRE) will offer better options for managing risk. Farmers will also be able to participate in a state-level revenue protection system.

Conservation, energy and nutrition will also see improvements.

Funding for the Conservation Stewardship Program, previously the Conservation Security Program, will grow. More than 417,000 acres in Iowa will be enrolled, adding an additional $11 million each year to conservation funding in Iowa.

Iowa will also receive $166.5 million for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program during the five years of the farm bill. These two programs will improve water, soil erosion and wildlife in Iowa. The Wetland Reserve Program will also be continued.

Nutrition programs, which haven’t seen many improvements in 30 years, will receive 67 percent of the new money.

“Poor people have fallen behind in paying for food,” Harkin said, noting the food stamp program will be updated with new income requirements.

The bill will also increase funding, grants and research to growers of fruits, vegetables, organic food and other specialty crops.

In the area of energy, farmers will receive incentives to produce biomass crops to supply energy to biorefineries. Harkin said some of the incentives include loan guarantees, rental agreements and other programs to alleviate the cost of production.

Harkin said the bill will likely make it to Bush by next week. If Bush vetoes it, Harkin hopes there will be enough votes to override it.

Negotiators Reach Tentative Farm Bill Deal

2008-05-07T14:36:00Z

By Julie Hirschfeld Davis, Associated Press

"It's not just a farm bill. This is a farm and a food and an energy bill," said Harkin

WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional negotiators reached a tentative agreement Friday on a multibillion-dollar farm bill that includes a hefty increase for nutrition programs at a time of rising food prices.

An intense series of closed-door bargaining sessions over how to pay for the five-year, roughly $280 billion bill ended Friday afternoon with senior Democrats expressing optimism that they would soon be sending the measure to President Bush.

By Julie Hirschfeld Davis, Associated Press

"It's not just a farm bill. This is a farm and a food and an energy bill," said Harkin

"I don't think there's any question now that we can get this done by the eighth of May," said Rep. Collin C. Peterson, the Minnesota Democrat who heads the Agriculture Committee.

A key breakthrough came when senior lawmakers, after an hours-long huddle in an ornate room in the Capitol, agreed on a $1.7 billion package of tax breaks to be included in the bill, and on how to finance the overall package.

The outline includes an $861 million increase for nutrition programs over 10 years, partially paid for by slashing crop subsidies by $400 million and cutting a program to pay farmers for ruined crops by $250 million. Even though the legislation covers five years, congressional budget analysts estimate programs over a decade.

Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., said the shift was "urgently needed because of the run-up in food costs and food prices."

It also reflected the political and economic realities surrounding this year's tough farm bill talks. With crop prices high and the federal budget squeezed, there's less appetite in Washington for big farm programs, especially among congressional leaders who hail from urban areas. The sharp economic slump has many lawmakers focused more on job losses and home foreclosures than farm policy.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Rep. Charles B. Rangel, D-N.Y., the Ways and Means Committee chairman, pushed hard for the nutrition boosts.

"A lot of painful reductions (had) to be made in order to shift resources to places that are being hard hit by this weakening economy," Conrad said.

With the increases, Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, the Agriculture Committee chairman, said two-thirds of farm bill resources would go to nutrition.

"We carried a heavy load for nutrition," Harkin said. "It's not just a farm bill. This is a farm and a food and an energy bill."

To close stubborn funding gaps, negotiators agreed to cut an ethanol tax credit that has previously been seen as untouchable because of its popularity in politically potent Iowa. They sliced $1 billion in support for blending fuel with the corn-based additive, bringing the per-gallon credit from 51 cents to 45 cents.

They boosted support for another form of the clean-burning fuel additive — cellulosic ethanol, which is made from plant matter — by $400 million.

The measure increases funding for conservation programs, including a first-ever infusion of federal farm dollars — $372 million — to clean up the Chesapeake Bay.

"This is a very good day for Chesapeake Bay cleanup efforts," Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said.

The marathon round of negotiations was punctuated by several near-collapses and flare-ups between senior Democrats and Republicans struggling to reach a deal amid intense pressure from farm groups jealously guarding their subsidies.

"We took a little bit out of here and there and made it work but it's tough — nobody wants to give anything up," Peterson said.

The tentative deal includes a $3.8 billion disaster package, trimmed from the $4 billion farm-state lawmakers had initially sought.

"It's just a trim ... just a nick, we feel," said Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., "The program is there, and that's the important thing."

The tax package includes several elements sought by powerful lawmakers, including a tax break for race horse owners important to Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., the minority leader, and one that benefits timber companies championed by Baucus. Also included were trade preferences for Caribbean countries, a priority for Rangel, whose district has a high concentration of people of Caribbean descent.

Negotiators were still working to finalize provisions limiting farm subsidies for the wealthy. Under the tentative deal, the government would eventually limit payments to high-earning "nonfarmers," people who make only a small portion of their income from farming. But it wouldn't impose any income limits on wealthy farmers, Peterson said.

The Bush administration has called for much tougher limits that would apply to anyone who earned more than an average of $200,000 annually.

Advocates of more sweeping farm policy changes said the measure still wouldn't go far enough to scale back subsidies. Rev. David Beckmann of the nutrition group Bread for the World characterized the deal as a "half victory ... more help for hungry people, but no significant reform yet in the subsidy programs."

A final agreement on the massive measure will likely come next week, after staff aides spend the weekend hashing out key details. Senior Republicans and Democrats still must vet the deal with rank-and-file lawmakers.

They are racing to complete the measure before the current farm law runs out. Hours before the deal, Bush signed a one-week extension that expires May 2.

Harkin Dismisses Gas Tax Holiday Proposal

2008-05-07T13:57:00Z

By Jane Norman, Register Washington Bureau

"If you could assure me we could put money in the pockets of our consumers, I would be for it," Harkin said. "What’s to keep oil companies from only cutting the cost a nickel and pocketing the rest?"

Washington, D.C. – Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Ia., today threw cold water on the idea of a gasoline tax holiday, saying it’s a bad idea that probably won’t ever be taken up by Congress.

Two presidential candidates, Republican John McCain and Democrat Hillary Clinton, both have said they back the idea of a moratorium for the summer travel months in the interests of providing relief to strapped consumers. The third major presidential candidate, Democrat Barack Obama, is opposed, saying it’s an election gimmick and won’t save that much money.

Clinton has been on the attack on the issue as she campaigns in Indiana and North Carolina. She maintains consumers need help now.

By Jane Norman, Register Washington Bureau

Washington, D.C. – Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Ia., today threw cold water on the idea of a gasoline tax holiday, saying it’s a bad idea that probably won’t ever be taken up by Congress.

Clinton has been on the attack on the issue as she campaigns in Indiana and North Carolina. She maintains consumers need help now.

Harkin said in a conference call with Iowa reporters that he doubts oil companies would bring prices would go down if a tax holiday was declared. "If you could assure me we could put money in the pockets of our consumers, I would be for it," he said. "What’s to keep oil companies from only cutting the cost a nickel and pocketing the rest?"

In addition, he said, the summer road construction season is coming up and the highway trust fund depends upon tax revenue. If the fund was cut, it could cost jobs, Harkin said.

For a short-term fix, the government instead should consider either suspending the purchase of oil for the strategic reserve or even letting some oil out of the reserve, Harkin said. "We don’t need it right now," he said.

The federal gasoline tax makes up 18.4 cents of the cost of a gallon of gas.

On Wednesday, Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Ia., said he had "mixed emotions" as to whether a tax holiday was good policy, despite McCain’s support for it.

"It sounds good but it’s not good policy, to quote Senator Grassley," said Harkin.

Farm Bill Conferees Make Progress, But Deal Still Elusive

2008-04-16T14:27:00Z

CQ Politics

Conferees approved three of the 11 sections of a new five-year farm bill Tuesday, a small step toward finishing the measure before an extension of current law expires April 18.

House and Senate conferees unanimously agreed to the credit, trade and research titles of the bill, even though minor discrepancies remain between the two versions of the measure.

The conferees intend to meet again Wednesday, when Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin , D-Iowa, said they’ll likely adopt other titles of the bill, including nutrition, forestry and livestock.

CQ Politics

Conferees approved three of the 11 sections of a new five-year farm bill Tuesday, a small step toward finishing the measure before an extension of current law expires April 18.

House and Senate conferees unanimously agreed to the credit, trade and research titles of the bill, even though minor discrepancies remain between the two versions of the measure.

With the House out of session Friday, the day the existing law lapses, negotiators will have to decide Wednesday whether they can reach agreement on a new five-year bill or should seek another extension.

Conferees say they need only a little more time to hammer out a deal for President Bush’s signature, but major disputes over funding for the package remain to be resolved by leaders of the House Ways and Means Committee and Senate Finance Committee.

It’s likely that negotiators will meet into the weekend, Harkin said.

If staff members from the two chambers cannot work out differences on various sections between now and then, Harkin said conferees will vote on each unresolved provision.

“To that, I say amen,” said House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin C. Peterson , D-Minn., who said he’s frustrated minor disputes still have not been settled.

While conferees say they are close to a deal on policy provisions in the bill, funding for the measure remains a problem. House negotiators object to $2.5 billion in energy tax credits the Senate insists on adding to the farm bill’s $560 billion baseline. That’s in addition to an extra $10 billion the Senate is proposing to fund new farm programs and disaster aid.

Harkin seeks to restore funding for crime prevention

2008-04-01T21:03:00Z

IowaPolitics.com

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and 55 of his Senate colleagues today sent a bipartisan letter to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Appropriations seeking $489.6 million in this year’s supplemental appropriations bill for the Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (Byrne/JAG) program. The additional funding would restore Byrne/JAG funding for fiscal year 2008 to $660 million – including $6 million for Iowa – the same level that the Senate originally provided for in the Commerce Justice and Science Appropriations bill that passed the Senate last year.

IowaPolitics.com

While the Senate provided $660 million for Byrne/JAG grants, following a veto threat, the Omnibus Appropriations bill that ultimately passed funded the programs at only $170 million. This funding level represents a more than two-thirds drop from the 2007 level, and is down from nearly $900 million in 2002.

“Sheriffs and police officers from communities large and small have told me that Byrne Grants are essential to fighting the war on drugs,” said Senator Harkin. “In Iowa, the cut will lead to layoffs and the elimination of 15 of our 21 drug task forces. We cannot continue to slash the funding for such a vital program that has proven successful in keeping drugs and criminals off the street and making our neighborhoods safer.”

“As long as drug trafficking organizations continue to smuggle large amounts of meth and other illegal drugs into our state, multi-jurisdictional drug task forces are required to help keep our communities safe. Without these task forces, it would be open season for drug dealers. If something isn’t done to restore or offset the reduction in federal funding, the safety of Iowans will suffer,” said Gary Kendell, Director, Iowa Office of Drug Control Policy. “We are thankful for Senator Harkin’s leadership, and the support of Iowa’s entire congressional delegation, on this critical issue.”

The Byrne Grant Program, named after a police officer killed by a violent drug gang twenty years ago, is the only source of federal funding for multi-jurisdictional efforts to prevent and fight crime. The program funds drug task forces that have been vital in reducing methamphetamine labs around the country. In 2007, the grant provided the means for the Iowa Drug Task Force to seize more than 3,300 pounds of drugs. Byrne also helps pay for police, technology and crime prevention programs. The grant has also resulted in major innovations in crime control, including drug courts, gang prevention strategies and prisoner reentry programs.

Harkin optimistic about new farm bill

2008-03-15T20:19:00Z

By Tim Rohwer , Council Bluffs Daily

U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, seemed confident on the completion of a new farm bill, though the process is "arduous," he said during his weekly telephone news conference Thursday.Both chambers of Congress the previous day agreed to extend the benefits of the 2002 farm bill until April 18. It was to expire today. That action will ensure agriculture, conservation and nutrition programs in Iowa and across the country will continue without interruption until the new bill is completed, Harkin said.

By Tim Rohwer , Council Bluffs Daily

"This extension is actually a sign of progress," he said. "We wouldn't have opted for a short-term extension unless we had a strong level of confidence that a farm bill is within reach."

One sticking point, he said, is where an additional $10 billion over 10 years will come from and how it will be spent. Farm-state lawmakers have had difficulty in agreeing how to pay for the five-year, $286 billion package since it was passed by the House and Senate last year.

"It's an arduous process, but each day brings us closer to a resolution," Harkin said.

He has long pushed extra hard for stronger investments in renewable energy, conservation, nutrition assistance, rural development programs and promoting better diets and health for Iowans and all Americans.

"I remain optimistic," he said. "I would not have introduced this extension unless I believed that an agreement was within reach and that it was achievable within a few extra weeks."

Harkin says farm bill is close

2008-03-13T20:13:00Z

By Darwin Danielson, Radio Iowa

An agreement is very near on a new farm bill, according to Iowa Senator Tom Harkin. He says both the U.S. House and Senate passed an extension to the massive agricultural measure on Wednesday, one that will run through April 18th.

By Darwin Danielson, Radio Iowa

Harkin says the new Farm Bill will: "ensure that agriculture, conservation and nutrition programs in Iowa and across the country continue without interruption until a new Farm Bill is completed. This extension is a good sign of progress. We wouldn't have opted for a short-term extension unless we had a strong level of confidence that a Farm Bill deal is within reach within a few more weeks."

Harkin says he's continuing to meet with colleagues in both chambers and from both parties to work out a final agreement, particularly in how the ten-billion dollars in new funding will be used. Harkin says "there's a lot a stake for Iowa" in the Farm Bill, as the Senate version would provide an extra 11-million dollars a year for conservation programs within the state, and more than a billion dollars for investments in farm-based renewable energy, "moving us aggressively into cellulose ethanol." Earlier versions of the Farm Bill were expected to go to a vote months ago, in November and December.