Bills to Watch in the 108th Congress, 2nd Session

01/15/2004

108th Congress, 2nd Session will convene on January 20th, 2004. Last year, we've got Medicare Prescription Drug bill and Health Forests Restoration bill enacted and it was the major success in the National Grange's grassroots legislative lobbying efforts. However we still have many issues unresolved in Congress, which call for our ongoing watch and participation this year.

Let's start with the following legislations, which are now pending in Congress for further actions, we need to keep working on for revitalizing rural America.

HR 2673, Fiscal 2004 Agriculture Appropriations and Country of Origin Labeling
bill text

1. Bill Status
Latest Major Action: 12/8/2003 Conference report agreed to in House. Status: On agreeing to the conference report Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: 242 - 176 (Roll no. 676). A Senate cloture vote to end conference report debate is scheduled for 1/20/2004.

2. Grange Position
We oppose the delay of Mandatory Country of Origin labeling (see our previous action alert). We support dropping provisions related to the reimportation of prescription drugs.

3. Bill Highlights
· FY 03 Funding Level: $17.877 billion ($56.705 total mandatory)
· FY 04 President's Request: $17.141 billion ($60.488 billion total mandatory)
· FY 04 Bill: $16.943 billion ($63.686 billion total mandatory)

Supporting Farmers and Rural America:

• Farm Service Agency salaries and expenses are increased by $18 million over last year and 28.1 million below the President's request, to continue delivery of the farm ownership and farm operating loan programs. Total funding is $988 million.
• Agricultural credit program loan authorizations are decreased by $672 million below last year. Total loan authorization level is $3.265 billion, $253 million below the President's request.
• Agricultural Research Service is funded at $1.15 billion, an increase of $141 million above President's request and $2 million above last year (excluding last year's supplemental).
• Conservation Operations activities are increased by $33.4 million over last year, bringing FY 04 funding to $853 million, an increase of $149.4 million above the President's request.

Protecting Human Health and Safety:

• Food Safety and Inspection Service is increased by $29.7 million over last year, for a total of $784.5 million, $12.6 million below the President's request.
• Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service activities are funded at $33 million above last year for a total of $725.5 million, an increase of $26 million above the President's request.
• Food and Drug Administration is funded at $1.387 billion, $13.2 million above last year and $7.7 million below the President's request.

Fulfilling Commitments to Important Food and Nutrition Programs

• Child Nutrition Programs (Mandatory) are funded at $11.417 billion, $837 million above last year and $1 million below the President's request.
• Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is funded at $4.639 billion, a decrease of $57 million below last year and a decrease of $130 million below the President's request. Due to increased carry-over from fiscal year 2003, this funding level will support 7.8 million participants, as requested by the President.
• Food Stamp Program (Mandatory) is funded at $30.9 billion, an increase of $3.2 billion above the request and $4.6 billion above last year. · Food for Peace Program (PL 480) Title II is funded at a program level of $1.192 billion, an increase of $7 million above the President's request.

Other Provisions:

• Mandatory Country of Origin labeling for all products except for farm-raised fish and wild fish is delayed until September 30, 2006.
• Drops all Cuba-related provisions.
• Drops provisions related to the reimportation of prescription drugs.

HR 6, Energy Policy Act of 2003 bill text

1. Bill Status
Latest Major Action: 11/18/2003 Conference report agreed to in House. Status: On agreeing to the conference report Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: 246 - 180 (Roll No. 630). On Nov. 21, Senate Republicans were unable to stop a filibuster on the bill led by Senate Democrats, and the energy bill was blocked. However, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist has vowed to put the bill up for another vote when the Senate reconvenes in January.

2. Grange Position
We support increase of domestic energy production. We support renewable energy production incentives, including the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS), a tax incentive for the use of biodiesel, etc. Click Here to Review 108th Congress Energy Bill Side-by-Side Comparison Report: Senate, House, and Grange

3. Bill Highlights

Motor fuels

• Requires 5-bil gal of renewable fuels (mainly ethanol) be used in US fuel supply by 2012, more than doubling current usage.
• Includes a credit trading system for areas without sufficient ethanol infrastructure.
• Allows states and regions to opt out of the ethanol mandate if they can show that the requirement "would severely harm the economy or environment".
• Bans gasoline additive MTBE by 2015.
• Provides the MTBE industry with up to $250-mil/year from 2005 to 2012 to help ease the transition to ethanol.
• Requires the US Energy Department (DOE) to conduct a study to determine if the ethanol mandate will "likely result in significant adverse consumer impacts in 2005, on a national, regional or state basis".
• Ends the 2% oxygenate standard of the Clean Air Act.
• Provides liability protection for makers of gasoline additive MTBE in defective product lawsuits, retroactive to Sep 5, 2003.
• Provides liability protect for makers of gasoline additive ethanol in defective product lawsuits.

Strategic petroleum reserve

• Permanently reauthorizes the SPR.
• Expands the SPR's capacity from 700-mil bbl to 1-bil bbl.
• Directs the president to fill the SPR to the 1-bil bbl capacity as soon as practical.

Alaska natural gas pipeline

• Directs the FERC to expedite approval of permits to build the gas line from Alaska to the lower 48 states.
• Prohibits the so-called northern route, which would run through Canada.
• Provides loan guarantees of up to $18-bil.

Tax provisions

• Allows small refiners (less than 155,000 b/d) to expense 75% of capital costs incurred for complying with EPA's low-sulfur diesel fuel regulations.
• Gives small refiners a tax credit of 5 cts/gal on low-sulfur diesel produced during the tax year.
• Provides federal tax credit for oil and gas from unconventional sources, including an extension of section 29 tax credits.
• Ensure that taxes on ethanol-blended motor fuel be credited to the highway trust fund in the same way that non ethanol-blended fuels are credited by taxing a 10% ethanol-blended fuel at 18.4 cts/gal (not the current 13.2 cts/gal) and allocating the money to the highway trust fund.
• Eliminates the 5.2 cts/gal ethanol tax exemption and replaces it with a new, volumetric ethanol excise tax credit of 5.2 cts/gal on a 10% ethanol blend that refiners and blenders would apply when the pay taxes and after they prove they blended the ethanol into the gasoline.

Climate change, ANWR, inventory of outer continental resources

• No provisions

HR 2978 (S 1464), Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Tax Incentive Act of 2003 bill text

1.Bill Status
Latest Major Action: 7/25/2003 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

2. Grange Position
We support capital gains tax incentive to agricultural producers on the sale of their farm or ranch land. (See our previous action alert)

3. Bill Highlights

• Producers selling their land to a beginning farmer or rancher would receive a 100% reduction of their capital gains tax rate.
• Producers selling their land to someone who pledges to keep the land in agricultural production would receive a 50% reduction of their capital gains taxes.
• Active or recently retired ag producers selling their land to anyone, for any purpose, would receive an automatic 25% reduction of their capital gains taxes.

HR 8, Death Tax Repeal Permanency Act of 2003 bill text

1.Bill Status
Latest Major Action: 6/20/2003 Senate preparation for floor. Status: Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 165.

2. Grange Position
We support the permanent elimination of the federal estate tax. (See our previous action alert)

3. Bill Highlights

• Under current law, the death tax is repealed until 2010 when it will be re-imposed with a maximum rate of 55 percent and a unified credit exemption of $1 million. The Death Tax Repeal Permanency Act repeals this sunset provision and rids Americans of the estate tax permanently.

HR 1160 (S 560), Milk Import Tariff Equity Act bill text

1.Bill Status
Latest Major Action: 3/17/2003 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Trade.

2. Grange Position
We oppose the importation of caseinates and urge the adoption of tariff rate quotas on Milk Protein Consentrates entering the U.S. (See our previous action alert)

3. Bill Highlights

• Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to impose tariff-rate quotas (quantitative import limits) and provide various duty rates on certain casein, caseinates, milk protein concentrate, and other casein derivatives and glues imported into the United States (except imports from Mexico).
• Authorizes the President to: (1) enter into a trade agreement with a foreign country to grant new concessions as compensation in order to maintain the general level of reciprocal and mutually advantageous concessions; and (2) proclaim any necessary modification or continuance of any existing duty, or continuance of existing duty-free or excise treatment, or any quantitative limitation. Sets forth certain limits on the reduction of duties on such products.

HR 49 (S 150), Internet Tax Nondiscrimination Act bill text

1. Bill Status
Latest Major Action: 9/18/2003 Senate preparation for floor. Status: Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 283. Cities and States, concerned about losing authority to collect existing telecommunications taxes, have been able to stall the bill in the Senate.

2. Grange Position
We oppose any Federal Government imposed charges on the use of Internet.

3. Bill Highlights

• Amends the Internet Tax Freedom Act to prohibit a State or political jurisdiction from imposing: (1) Internet access taxes; or (2) multiple or discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce.
• Eliminates: (1) the definition of a tax that is "generally imposed and actually enforced"; and (2) from the definitions of "tax on Internet access" and "discriminatory tax" the exception for a tax generally imposed and actually enforced prior to October 1, 1998. (Makes the existing tax moratorium permanent and applies such tax prohibition to all States, thus ending the existing authority of certain States to tax Internet access.)

HJR 4 (SJR 4), Desecration of Flag Resolution bill text

1. Bill Status
Latest Major Action: 6/4/2003 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

2. Grange Position
We support a constitutional amendment that will ban the desecration of the American Flag. (See our previous action alert)

3. Bill Highlights

• Constitutional Amendment - Grants Congress power to prohibit the physical desecration of the U.S. flag.

HR 660 (S 545), Small Business Health Fairness Act of 2003 bill text

1. Bill Status
Latest Major Action: 6/20/2003 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

2. Grange Position
We support allowing small businesses to band together through associations and purchase quality health care for workers and their families at a lower cost. (See our previous action alert)

3. Bill Highlights

• Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to provide for establishment and governance of association health plans (AHPs), which are group health plans whose sponsors are trade, industry, professional, chamber of commerce, or similar business associations, and which meet certain ERISA certification requirements. (Thus, through ERISA preemption of State laws, certified AHPs are exempted from State regulation of health insurance providers, including State consumer protection laws and State requirements for health care benefits to be offered by such entities, with certain exceptions.)

HR 2096, Long-Term Care and Retirement Security Act of 2003 bill text

1. Bill Status
Latest Major Action: 5/14/2003 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

2. Grange Position
We support income tax credits for those families who care for their elderly or handicapped relatives who otherwise would become residents of a nursing home. We urge the Congress to enact legislation to allow a line item tax deduction, regardless of tax form used, for Long Term Care Insurance premiums. (See our previous action alert)

3. Bill Highlights

• Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow: (1) a deduction (increasing percentages with full deductibility as of 2008) for eligible long-term care insurance premiums for a taxpayer, spouse, and dependents and (2) long-term care insurance to be offered under cafeteria plans and flexible spending arrangements.
• Allows an income-adjusted (limited) credit for eligible individuals with long-term care needs.

If you have any questions or comments please contact Legislative Research Analyst Chil-Sook Hwang by fax: 202-347-1091 or by phone: 1-888-4GRANGE, ext 109. Thank you for your grassroots participation in the National Grange Legislative program.

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