COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho-The USDA will move to implement a farm bill as quickly as possible if Congress approves one, said a USDA undersecretary.
Michael Scuse, undersecretary for farm and foreign agricultural services, said there will be a hard look at government programs to see what works, what's no longer needed and how to do more with less.
"There's no leadership in kicking the can down the road-we need a Food, Farm and Jobs Act now," he said.
USDA has declared more than half of the counties in the United States as disaster areas, Scuse said, but some disaster programs in the farm bill expired last fall and others expired more than a year ago.
"Growers and ranchers need certainty, and we can't wait," he said. "We must work around those who create roadblocks or can't get things done."
SOURCE: Matthew Weaver, Capital Press
http://www.capitalpress.com/newsletter/mw-Undersecretary-111212-art