Senate Majority
Leader Harry Reid says his chamber won't pass an extension of farm
policy this year and is pressuring the House to figure out how to pass a
farm bill.
The House rejected its version of a
five-year, half-trillion-dollar farm bill last week, with 62
Republicans voting no after Speaker John Boehner urged support. The
Senate passed its farm bill earlier this month with support from
two-thirds of the chamber.
Reid on Monday urged Boehner take up the Senate farm bill before current policy expires Sept. 30.
"Doing
nothing means no reform, no deficit reduction and no certainty for
America's 16 million farm-industry workers," Reid said.
Both
bills expand farm subsidies while saving money overall and making cuts
to the almost $80 billion-a-year food stamp program, which has doubled
in cost in the last five years. The Senate bill cuts $400 million a year
from food stamps, or half a percent, while the House bill cuts $2
billion annually, or about three percent.
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