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FRANKFORT, Ky. — Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer joined other farm leaders in the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture to call on Congress to do more to promote America’s renewable fuels industry during NASDA’s annual conference in Norfolk, Va.
“The growth of products like ethanol and biodiesel presents a golden opportunity for farmers in Kentucky and throughout the United States,” Commissioner Farmer said. “Biofuels bring more money into rural communities and create jobs. They reduce our country’s dependence on oil from some of the most unstable areas of the world. And they help the environment by cutting tailpipe emissions. It’s in our national interest to support these renewable sources of energy.”
During the NASDA 2006 conference Sept. 15-20, the association called on Congress to:
- Increase the renewable fuels standard to 30 billion gallons a year by 2025;
- Implement the “25 X ‘25” initiative, which seeks to have 25 percent of the United States’ energy come from renewable resources such as biofuels, wind and solar by 2025;
- Make permanent the federal tax credit for production of ethanol and biodiesel; and
- Grant funding for carbon sequestration research.
NASDA also called for:
- Full funding of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s fresh fruit and vegetable pilot program to promote fruit and vegetable consumption by schoolchildren;
- Full funding of the Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program, and expanding the CSFP to all states;
- Continuing the current market loan and counter-cyclical program in federal farm policy until the World Trade Organization clarifies its position on farm subsidies;
- Continuing the dairy self-help program and multi-state milk marketing agreements, and ending a system that has Kentucky dairies subsidizing competing dairies in other states;
- Permanent funding for federal disaster assistance;
- Utilizing export subsidies at the fullest amount authorized by law until the United States’ trading partners end their subsidies;
- Full congressional support of land-grant universities to recruit and teach students in agriculture-related fields;
- Consistent enforcement by USDA of National Organic Program rules;A block grant of $2 million for each state for the specialty crop program; and
- Implementation of the country-of-origin food labeling law.
NASDA consists of the state commissioners, secretaries and directors of agriculture from all 50 states and four U.S. territories. Commissioner Farmer is vice president of the Southern Association of State Departments of Agriculture, an affiliate organization of NASDA.
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