Looking for a site re farm bill

[425Cat]

Anyone have a good source explaining the details of the farm bill

[Blacksandfarmer]

Im wondering if we still have to report acres to FSA being that we will have no direct payments? Will crop insurance have conservation compliance?

[sw363535]

not yet and 

I think that will be right --------- they been preparing for that,  The details get turned into insurance instead of FSA.  But even after the final passing, usda may rewrite details to force busy work at both places. 

[elcheapo]

In my humble opinion, I believe doing
Away with direct payments. The business
Owners, bankers, that I have talked to.
See that as less business. While they
Didn't make you rich, they do help with
The bills. In theory every dollar in rural
Community, is turned 15 to 20 times.

I have herd the insurance thing before.
First....the winners...the insurance Co.
Even with the last few years, most have
Made money.
Second, you can't insure at 100%, that
I know of.
Lastly, it has always been negative for
The plaines.
You people with irrigation or in the
Corn belt which usually have good
Weather, its ok.
But if you are dryland, what do you
Do? Some producers have loses for
Several years due to drought, just what
Does that do to your aph?
not only will you get hit with a lower
Total guarantee, but possible additional
risk factors.

Those jumping for joy frankly know very
Little about true agriculture economics
Or rural community economics.

Our small rural communities are having
A difficulty the way it is. It has got to
The point where the local community
Has to chip in just to have a place to
Get basic grocery, or a place to eat.
I know of one car dealer that is worried
He sells a number of new pickups.....a lot
Of the direct payments he though helped
Fund sales.

All right have at it, but your not going
To change my mind.

[sw363535]

Elcheapo,         I can't disagree with that at all.   especially in the dryland areas where weather is less consistant.

aph's that start out in 50 bpa fall crops and below dissapear pretty fast in a few dry years.

The internet fight to embarasse, trim, and stop direct payments will be another event that will hurt small farms in fringe cituations.

Also I have always considered crp to be a very damaging event for small farms.  thirty years of payments that funded retirements without the need of a young replacement farmer.  One of those times when we did not consider the down side of a program.

[WCMO]

IMO

The added insurances via the farm bill mostly benefit larger-than-average operations that can "lock-in" a minimum marginal break-even or profit, and market the balance for the upside profit potential.  Average to smaller operations that also draw a living out of the farm often cannot "lock-in" a level to cover everything [fewer acres to cover a fixed cost, so living allocation results in higher cost/acre], so must gamble on a larger percentage of their production to cover all outflows.  It also benefits those in marginal financial situations due to purchases/expansion, or at least gives some peace of mind.  Tying to base acres also benefits those with big old established base acres -- it depends on how they do the base acres -- last time they adjusted, they allowed some big old established base acres to carry forward, even if the crop wasn't planted anymore -- needs to be more of a continuous rolling average of actual planted acres and crops -- with nothing "grandfathered" in. 

We'll learn alot more as more information comes out in this site, paper publications, etc.  I really don't like the part where you have to make an election up front, and can't change it for future years, and if you wanted to sit out the first year for some reason, can you get in later?  Or, if you add some ground later that is not in the program, can it be added?

Just noticed the other thread -- http://community.agriculture.com/t5/Marketing/New-Farm-Bill-Provisions/m-p/452433

Those guys are smarter than me, go there.

[sw363535]

How on earth can it relate to bases or acre history  or ...........  When we stopped updating that information in the Clinton administration  1996.  We have grass in our area that has better base and crop history than irrigated corn ground because the irrigation started in 1999.     

funny story ------ well you kinda have to know the guy ---------

Local guy retired (one of the earliest and most successful no-til guys I know),  bought a house close to family 200 miles away.

Signed up land in crp.  He spent 30 years building the best dry land APH's in the area.  

Moving in to the retirement house................. the light bulb came on in his head.  

He drives home and pays the penalty to get out of the crp contract and is farming through the drought making 4+ times what he would have in crp through crop insurance.  

He says that APH meant nothing to anyone but me and it won't mean anything to anyone when they stop or change programs.  Why waste it???

[WCMO]

Can't blame the guy, probably a wise move on his part!

The base acres come in to play on part of the new farm bill stuff -- you'll have to read thru it.  Of course, they had to find a way to incorporate the base acre stuff so we have to keep reporting acres to FSA.  We were able to update base acres, I think the last time was in 2002, when they added soybeans, which were previously excluded from the base acres.  At that time, even if you were planting 50% beans every year, if you had an old 100% corn base, you could keep it.  And, since I've been farming, if you don't have base acres established, the only "program" you qualify for is crop insurance -- added a few pieces of rental ground over the years where the previous landowner or tenant never established base acres for them -- so they've never had any program payments.  I read somewhere a few years ago that there were some guys in the cotton areas that didn't grow cotton anymore, but were getting something like $120/acre in direct payments on cotton base they were able to grandfather in back in 2002 -- something I remember reading, don't know if it's true -- if true, good for them, but programs really need to start getting "current real world" on this stuff.  Heck, I've still got a little oats base carried over from who knows when, but I've never planted oats.

[k-289]

I would question if " CRP " or  "Seaboard - Smithfield " being the event changer for youth in agriculture ---  

[sw363535]

The counties around us maxed out on crp.  Irrig land still farmed and most of dryland acres went crp because the max acres were tied to total acres.  Dry land was a way in for "mentored" new guys.

But your right it was not the only factor in the equation and not the "event changer".  Just one of the factors in a few instances.