OFB leaders will visit nation's Capitol

Date of release: 3/18/2008

OFB leaders will have an opportunity to visit with the Oklahoma Congressional delegation during the 2008 Congressional Action Tour, March 30 - April 3. The Oklahoma delegation includes Senators Tom Coburn and Jim Inhofe as well as Congressmen John Sullivan, Dan Boren, Frank Lucas, Tom Cole and Congresswoman Mary Fallin.

With the 2002 Farm Bill expiring last year, the number one issue atop OFB’s priority list of issues to discuss with our delegation is the new Farm Bill. The U.S. House and Senate each passed their versions of the bill in 2007, however before a new farm bill can become law the differences in the two versions must be reconciled by a conference committee, the conference agreement must be passed by the Senate and House and the president must sign the bill. OFB leaders will strongly emphasize the need to extend the concepts of the former Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 into the next farm bill.

OFB leaders will also be asking the delegation to support efforts in the U.S. House and Senate to clarify that Congress never intended animal waste to be classified as a hazardous substance under the federal “Superfund” law. Lead sponsors of the animal waste clarification measure include House of Representatives Agriculture Committee Chairman, Collin Peterson and Senator Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, the lead sponsor in the Senate. Congressman Lucas signed on to the measure as an original cosponsor.

OFB members will be thanking Congressman Dan Boren and Congresswoman Mary Fallin for authoring H.R. 3098, an American Farm Bureau priority piece of legislation that was originally requested by OFB. H.R. 3098 would change the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations definition of a commercial motor carrier from 10,001 lbs to 26,001 lbs. The bill would also prevent the U.S. Department of Transportation from requiring State Departments of Transportation to enforce certain requirements on agricultural producers hauling their own commodities in intrastate commerce.