Farmers Union Updates Producers on Farm Bill Progress - KXNet - Bismarck/Minot/Williston/Dickinson

The Farmers Union updates local producers on 2012 Farm Bill progress.

Reporter Sarah Gustin takes you to Flasher for the story.

Crop insurance, crop insurance, crop insurance.

(Tom Brusegaard / US Senator John Hoeven Ag Policy Advisor) "Their main priority is really is having a good solid crop insurance program. 

(Woody Barth / NDFU President) "We need to have a strong safety net in place."

(Wes Niederman / Morristown, SD Producer) "The crop insurance is a big thing."

Whether it's at the national or state level or in the field, the main focus of the 2012 Farm Bill is the same--a strong safety net is essential.

(Woody Barth / NDFU President) "Price support is very important to us. Risk management, protection for livestock producers. Those things are very important to us and we need to move those programs forward and keep all titles of the farm bill in place."

Today producers listen in from top state Ag officials as the house marks up its version of the bill.

The bill the Senate passed at the end of June includes 23 billion dollars in cuts helping reduce the national deficit.

(Wes Niederman / Morristown, SD Producer)"Most producers down my way realize they can do without the direct payments, they can live without the direct payments, but in a year when we are looking at drought or major catosphres, they know they can't do without crop insurance. That has to remain where it is or even be strengthened."

(Tom Brusegaard / US Senator John Hoeven Ag Policy Advisor) "The bill passed by the Senate has an excellent crop insurance program with a new provision called ARC, it's like a shallow loss program so if you have revenue losses in the 12-19% range, you have an opportunity to pay a premium and get some compensation for that." 

Ag Policy advisor for Senator John Hoeven's office Tom Brusegaard says the biggest challenge the bill has to overcome is getting both northern and southern lawmakers to agree.

(Tom Brusegaard / US Senator John Hoeven Ag Policy Advisor) "You'll have the tension between added enhanced crop insurance programs and more traditional price support type thing, you'll probably see a compromise of some sort of a version of a bill that has both."

All agree the bill is far from perfect, but it is a strong piece of legislation that will allow producers to manage risk on their operations and make good production and marketing decisions in the years ahead.

Today's farm bill forum is the first of 6 being held throughout the state.

Tomorrow Farmers Union will be at Kenmare and McClusky.