Released: January 02, 2002
Kill Date: January 22, 2002

K-State to Host Farm Bill Seminars

MANHATTAN, Kan. – With the Farm Bill of 1996 set to expire at the end of September, 2002, Kansas State University’s Department of Agricultural Economics will host Farm Bill Seminars in various locations around the state.

The meetings, designed to examine the next farm bill and what it means for farmers, agribusinesses, conservation groups and rural communities, will be held in January and February.

The 1996 Farm Bill, dubbed Freedom to Farm by some groups, was a distinct departure from previous farm bills in that payments were decoupled from prices and production, said K-State Research and Extension state leader Barry Flinchbaugh.

"It provided farmers with the flexibility to respond to the marketplace, rather than following the dictates of the farm program," Flinchbaugh said. "Farmers responded to that." He cited the decline in wheat acres and increases in the more lucrative oilseed production in recent years.

In the third year of the 1996 bill, however, the Asian economy weakened. U.S. commodity exports to key markets tumbled from $60 billion in 1996 to $49 billion in 1999, and pulled commodity prices down with them. Congress responded with emergency payments to farmers and by putting a floor under farm income, Flinchbaugh said.

"Against this backdrop, Congress has been in the throes of producing the next Farm Bill," he added. "The situation is volatile and is changing day by day."

The program at the K-State seminars will depend on where Congress is in the process, Flinchbaugh said. "We’ll look at the political setting and will detail proposals that are under consideration. If a bill has already passed, the seminar will examine the implications of its provisions.

"Just how important is the new Farm Bill for Kansas farmers?" Flinchbaugh said. "According to Kansas Farm Management Association records kept on over 2,000 Kansas farms, an average of 116 percent of net income came from government payments in 2000."

Brad Lubben, Extension economist for northeast Kansas, and Clay Simons, Extension risk management assistant, will join Flinchbaugh on the seminar program.

"We’ll emphasize commodity and environmental programs and there will be plenty of time for questions," Flinchbaugh said. "People can come and learn about how to factor the new farm bill into their management decisions, and where its impact will be on their farming operations."

Dates, locations and contact telephone numbers for each of the meetings are:

* Jan. 22 - Hays - 785-628-9430

* Jan. 23 - Salina - 785-309-5850

* Jan. 24 - Hutchinson - 620-662-2371

* Jan. 25 - Manhattan - 785-537-6350

* Jan. 28 - Nortonville - 913-833-5450

* Feb.11 - Colby - 785-462-4582

* Feb.12 - Dodge City - 620-227-4542

* Feb. 13 - Hugoton - 620-544-4359

* Feb. 14 - Scott City - 620-872-2930

* Feb. 21 - Garnett - 785-448-6826

* Feb. 22 - Independence - 620-331-2690

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K-State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well-being of Kansans. Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and regional research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K-State campus, Manhattan.

Story by:
Mary Lou Peter, Communications Specialist
mlpeter@oznet.ksu.edu
K-State Research& Extension News