Welcome to the Platteville High School AP Government Blog. Here we continue classroom discussion and connect current events to course concepts.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Farm Bill Expected to Pass
I recommend checking out this NPR story and this CBS story on the farm bill that is expected to pass. As we talked about in class, the 5-year farm bills are often "christmas tree bills" full of earmarks. This one will be no different.
The new farm bill is different from the last in that it replaces the direct subsidies granted to farmers with granted crop insurance to them. The funding comes from tax money, and partially from a new tax on Christmas trees ($0.15 per tree). The total money provided for this about $80 billion per year, which has quadrupled from a decade ago. The farm bills were originally passed as welfare for struggling farmers, to assist them in earning a revenue. However, most of the money now goes toward large industrial companies who primarily produce junk food.
I think that the original intent of this plan was a good one. This nation is largely agricultural, and thus it’s necessary to inspire future farmers to carry out their goals. If there’s isn’t protection from accidental crop failure though, this isn’t likely to happen. On the contrary, big companies who aren’t struggling to make a profit really don’t need the government’s money to help to earn their wages, and thus shouldn’t be given the money from the farm bill intended to support those who are struggling.
Thus I think that the farm bill should grant farmers crop insurances and help the small farmers who need financial assistance to earn a revenue; I think that the money provided for the farm bill through taxes should be placed in the proper hands. This would raise the income classes of impoverished farmers, thus pumping money into the economy to improve the economy-rather than making the rich even richer, and merely supporting the upper class.
I agree completely with Elyssa. I think the farm bill should be giving money to the farmers who actually need it to raise revenue, instead of farmers who don’t need the money to be successful. I also agree that the original intent of the farm bill was a good one. The NPR radio stated that it was originally introduced after hard times in America to help farmers start off again on the right foot. Over time though, much of the subsidies have been given to those who don’t need it, and to corporations that produce unhealthy, junk food over nutritious food, which I don’t necessarily agree with. Even though this isn’t directly related to Elyssa’s comment, I think that it is amazing how much this bill costs! $956 BILLION tax dollars in spending over ten years? That seems like an awful lot of money. Isn’t there a way to reduce that amount?
The new farm bill is different from the last in that it replaces the direct subsidies granted to farmers with granted crop insurance to them. The funding comes from tax money, and partially from a new tax on Christmas trees ($0.15 per tree). The total money provided for this about $80 billion per year, which has quadrupled from a decade ago. The farm bills were originally passed as welfare for struggling farmers, to assist them in earning a revenue. However, most of the money now goes toward large industrial companies who primarily produce junk food.
ReplyDeleteI think that the original intent of this plan was a good one. This nation is largely agricultural, and thus it’s necessary to inspire future farmers to carry out their goals. If there’s isn’t protection from accidental crop failure though, this isn’t likely to happen. On the contrary, big companies who aren’t struggling to make a profit really don’t need the government’s money to help to earn their wages, and thus shouldn’t be given the money from the farm bill intended to support those who are struggling.
Thus I think that the farm bill should grant farmers crop insurances and help the small farmers who need financial assistance to earn a revenue; I think that the money provided for the farm bill through taxes should be placed in the proper hands. This would raise the income classes of impoverished farmers, thus pumping money into the economy to improve the economy-rather than making the rich even richer, and merely supporting the upper class.
Resources
http://www.npr.org/2014/02/04/271355316/senate-expected-to-pass-long-delayed-farm-bill
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/in-latest-farm-bill-a-billion-tax-dollars-per-page/
I agree completely with Elyssa. I think the farm bill should be giving money to the farmers who actually need it to raise revenue, instead of farmers who don’t need the money to be successful. I also agree that the original intent of the farm bill was a good one. The NPR radio stated that it was originally introduced after hard times in America to help farmers start off again on the right foot. Over time though, much of the subsidies have been given to those who don’t need it, and to corporations that produce unhealthy, junk food over nutritious food, which I don’t necessarily agree with. Even though this isn’t directly related to Elyssa’s comment, I think that it is amazing how much this bill costs! $956 BILLION tax dollars in spending over ten years? That seems like an awful lot of money. Isn’t there a way to reduce that amount?
Delete