NCGA committee discusses public policy issues

The PPAT, a nationwide team of 16 farmers and staff, is tasked with offering direction to NCGA on public policy.
The PPAT, a nationwide team of 16 farmers and staff, is tasked with offering direction to NCGA on public policy.
Federal programs affecting corn farmers were the main topic of discussion when the National Corn Growers Association’s (NCGA) Public Policy Action Team (PPAT) met in St. Louis.

The PPAT, a nationwide team of 16 farmers and staff, is tasked with offering direction to NCGA on public policy.

The St. Louis meeting included a presentation by officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service and Risk Management Agency, explaining to the team how farm production data is collected by the two groups.

Carl Zulauf, recently retired from Ohio State University, presented his analysis on farm safety and crop insurance programs. In 2014, Zulauf was monumental in creating the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) program that was featured in the 2014 farm bill.

“The 2014 farm bill included major reforms, including ARC, a more market-based approach to risk management,” PPAT Chair Steve Ebke said. "NCGA pushed for this crucial safety net, which kicks in only when needed. Many farmers are seeing that situation right now, with their gross revenue for corn at or below the cost of production.”
  
Other topics discussed during the meeting were crop insurance program changes, federal tax reform, CornPAC and the NCGA strategic plan.