- Senate: Motion to Table; Farm Bill Sugar Price Supports Repeal
- Senate: Motion to Table; Farm Bill Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Elimination
Upcoming Congressional Bills -
- Senate: Farm Bill
- House: Domestic Energy and Jobs Act
Motion to Table; Farm Bill Sugar Price Supports Repeal
http://capwiz.com/congressorg/issues/votes/?votenum=119&chamber=S&congress=1122
Vote Agreed to (50-46, 4 Not Voting)
Last week saw the Senate struggling to come to agreement on which amendments it would consider to the five-year reauthorization of agriculture and nutrition programs. The first such amendment - offered by Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., on behalf of Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H. would phase out the federal price support program for sugar producers by 2015. Detractors of the program argue that it artificially inflates prices for consumers and end-users, such as confectioners. The programs backers argue that it actually shields both of these groups from violent swings in market prices by providing a supportive environment for domestic sugar production. The actual vote taken, however, was not on the amendment itself but on a motion to table. The motion passed, thus killing the amendment.
Sen. Saxby Chambliss voted YES
Sen. Johnny Isakson voted YES
Southern Senators voting in the interest of their agricultural states, to protect all farm price supports. Not so sure that I agree with that, no doubt that price variances can crush farmers but in the end price supports push markets into unnatural positions.
Motion to Table; Farm Bill Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Elimination
http://capwiz.com/congressorg/issues/votes/?votenum=120&chamber=S&congress=1122
Vote Agreed to (65-33, 2 Not Voting)
The second amendment brought up for consideration concerned federal nutrition assistance, known by its acronym SNAP. Republicans have raised the alarm that spending under this program has ballooned in recent years and have sought to cut benefits. Democrats have countered that the program is actually functioning as it was designed to do, with more people coming on the rolls because of a weak economy. A sequester-replacement bill (H.R. 5652) passed last month in the House mostly along party lines would cut $34 billion from SNAP in the next 10 years as part of an effort to avoid Pentagon cuts. This Senate amendment, again offered by Reid (this time on behalf of Rand Paul, R-Ky.), would do House Republicans one better by ending SNAP as it currently exists and in its place creating a block grant program that would send a fixed amount of money to the states each year for the overall purpose of nutrition assistance, but with far fewer strings attached than there are currently. The actual vote was once again on a motion to table rather than the amendment itself.
Sen. Saxby Chambliss voted NO
Sen. Johnny Isakson voted NO
A program ammendment that cuts 34 million dollars over 10 years. Not a lot of money in the big picture. For the life of me the way these men cobble together programs having dunrelated objectives baffles me. My guess is that the Democrats tagged this onto a Farm Bill that the southern Senators had to vote for.
The Senate will continue consideration of the farm bill.
Domestic Energy and Jobs Act - H.R.4480
The House will consider this bill that would mandate an increase in oil and gas production equivalent to any release from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Seems logical, why does this require a vote of Congress?
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