U.S. Senator Ken Salazar

Member: Finance, Agriculture, Energy, Ethics and Aging Committees

 

2300 15th Street, Suite 450 Denver, CO 80202 | 702 Hart Senate Building, Washington, D.C. 20510

 

 

For Immediate Release

January 12, 2007

CONTACT:    Cody Wertz – Comm. Director

                        303-455-7600

Andrew Nannis  – Press Secretary

                        202-224-5852


  Sen. Salazar Works with Senate Leadership to Introduce Ag Disaster Relief; Legislation Would Benefit Farmers and Ranchers Hit by Colorado Blizzards

WASHINGTON, D.C. – United States Senator Ken Salazar, Senator Kent Conrad and a bipartisan group of Senators today introduced the Emergency Farm Relief Act of 2007 today. The bill provides critical aid to America’s farmers and ranchers impacted by ongoing droughts and other natural disasters – including the blizzards that have ravaged Colorado over the last few weeks.

“As if seven years of drought weren’t enough, Colorado’s farmers and ranchers are now buried under several feet of snow that are killing their cattle and ruining their lands,” said Senator Salazar. “This bipartisan group introduced similar legislation for the past two years and we came close to passing it. In recent weeks I have heard reports of more than 10,000 cattle dead. If ever there was a time to help out our farmers and ranchers, it is now.”

In addition to provisions in the legislation introduced last year, this disaster assistance package will provide payments to ranchers for livestock losses due to blizzards, hurricanes, floods, wildfires and other natural disasters. These programs have been extended to cover those who suffered from the December winter storms, in addition to the 2005 and 2006 production years.

These programs, though they will help those who suffered from the blizzard, are independent of the Disaster Declaration programs currently being implemented by Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Several times over the last year, a bipartisan group of Senators including Democratic Senators Salazar (CO), Conrad (ND), and Baucus (MT), and Republican Senators Coleman (MN), Hagel (NE) and Thune (SD), introduced the “Emergency Farm Relief Act of 2006.” Covering losses incurred in both 2005 and 2006, the Act would provide billions in direct emergency disaster relief for losses due to ongoing disasters. The legislation is comprehensive and national in scope, covering losses from hurricanes, drought, flood, disease and other weather related causes. The bill also provides for a Livestock Compensation program for producers in designated disaster counties to help cover their added costs of procuring livestock feed, supplemental nutrition and economic disaster assistance in the form of a supplemental direct payment as well as funding for a small business grant program for businesses that have suffered financial losses due to drought conditions in their communities.

“America’s farmers and ranchers deserve our help,” added Senator Salazar. “I hope the Senate will pass this legislation with the urgency that is required.”

In March 2006, Senator Salazar joined with a bipartisan group of 26 Senate colleagues, led by Sen. Kent Conrad of North Dakota, to introduce S.2438, the Emergency Agricultural Disaster Assistance Act of 2006. In April 2006, S.2438 was unanimously included into the $96B Iraq/ Afghanistan/ hurricane relief emergency supplemental appropriations bill, H.R. 4939, which passed the Senate by a vote of 77 to 21 in early May of this year with Senator Salazar’s support. Unfortunately, this important rural relief provision failed to survive the House-Senate conference.

# # #