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Staff Contact: Brad Watson (x69719) May 10, 2007

**Appropriations Policy Brief**

**H.R. 2207 --- Agricultural Disaster Assistance and Western States
Emergency Unfinished Business Appropriations Act**

**FY 2007**

**[Agricultural Assistance (Title I):]{.underline}**

[]{.mark}

In millions

  ------------------------ ------------- ------------ ----------- ---------------- --------
                           **Request**   **Senate**   **House**   **Conference**   **H.R.
                                                                                   2207**

  Emergency Conservation   0             35           20          20               20
  Program                                                                          

  Dairy Assistance         0             95                       20               20

  Emergency Grants to      0             0            0           21               21
  Assist Low-Income                                                                
  Migrant and Seasonal                                                             
  Workers                                                                          

  Farm Service Agency,     0             0            0           30               30
  Administrative Expenses                                                          
  ------------------------ ------------- ------------ ----------- ---------------- --------

***[Note:]{.underline}*** The above chat includes only discretionary
spending and not new agriculture entitlement spending.

**[Items of Note:]{.underline}**

**Crop Disaster Assistance**: Provides agriculture assistance to
producers experiencing crop losses in 2005, 2006, or 2007 due to bad
weather. Farmers experiencing losses in more than one year would be
required to choose only one year for which they wish to receive loss
compensation. A large portion would be provided in the form of direct
payments to agriculture producers who experienced more than 35% crop
loss in expected production. The payment would be 50% of the market
price. Producers would not be eligible for these payments if they had
failed to purchase available crop insurance. The bill ensures that these
disaster payments would not exceed 95% of a crop's worth in the absence
of hurricane destruction.

**Livestock Assistance**: Provides compensation for livestock losses in
2005, 2006, and 2007, due to a disaster, including wildfire in the state
of Texas and other states and blizzards in the states of Colorado,
Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. Cattlemen experiencing
losses in more than one year would be required to choose only one year
for which they wish to receive loss compensation.

**Livestock Indemnity Payments**: Provides livestock indemnity payments
to producers on farms experiencing livestock losses due to hurricanes,
floods, anthrax, and wildfires in the state of Texas and other states,
and blizzards in the states of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico,
and Oklahoma. Cattlemen experiencing losses in more than one year would
be required to choose only one year for which they wish to receive loss
compensation. Payments would be not less than 30% of the market value of
the livestock on the day before their death.

**Emergency Conservation Program**: Authorizes \$20 million to the
Secretary of Agriculture for assistance through the Emergency
Conservation Program for cleanup and restoration of farm and
agricultural production lands.

**Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) Program**: Extends for one month,
authorization of MILC Program---extending it through September 2007.

**Dairy Assistance**: Provides \$20 million to make payments to dairy
producers for dairy production losses in disaster counties.

**Low Income Migrant Workers**: Provides \$21 million for grants to
public agencies and private organizations (501(c)(3)s) that have
experience in providing emergency services to low-income migrant and
seasonal farm workers after there has been a local, state or national
emergency that has caused these workers to lose income.

**Farm Service Agency**: Provides \$30 million for administrative
expenses (for salaries and expenses) at the Farm Service Agency.

**RSC Staff Contact for This Title**: Brad Watson,
brad.watson@mail.house.gov, (202) 226-9719

[]{.mark}

**[Emergency Appropriations for Western States (Title
II):]{.underline}**

[]{.mark}

In millions

  ------------------------ ------------- ------------ ----------- ---------------- -------
                           **Request**   **Senate**   **House**   **Conference**   

  NOAA, California Salmon  0             60           60          60               60

  Interior, Wildland Fire  0             100          100         100              100
  Management                                                                       

  Agriculture, Wildland    0             400          400         400              400
  Fire Management                                                                  

  Secure Rural Schools,    0             400          400         425              425
  USDA                                                                             
  ------------------------ ------------- ------------ ----------- ---------------- -------

**[Items of Note:]{.underline}**

**National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA): ** Provides
\$60.4 million for the National Marine Fisheries Service under NOAA to
be distributed among fishing communities, Indian tribes, individuals,
small businesses, including fishermen, fish processors, and related
businesses for assistance to "mitigate the economic and other social
effects caused by the commercial fishery failure, as determined by the
Secretary on August 10, 2006."

**Wildland Fire Management:**  Provides a combined \$400 million for the
Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service for "urgent
wildland fire suppression activities." 

**Secure Rural Schools Act (Forest County Payments):**  Provides \$425
million to be used for one-time payments to be allocated to states under
the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000. 
This program provides a funding stream (known as forest county payments)
to counties with large amounts of Bureau of Land Management land, in
order to compensate for the loss of receipt-sharing payments on this
land caused by decreased revenue from timber sales due to environmental
protections for endangered species.  The authorization for these forest
county payments expired at the end of FY 2006, and counties received
their last payment under the Act in December 2006. 

**RSC Staff Contact for This Title**: Brad Watson,
<brad.watson@mail.house.gov>, (202) 226-0719