II

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1118

To amend the Agricultural Market Transition Act to convert the price support

program for sugarcane and sugar beets into a system of solely recourse

loans and to provide for the gradual elimination of the program.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MAY 25, 1999

Mr. SCHUMER (for himself, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. CHAFEE, Mr. GREGG, Mr.

SANTORUM, and Mr. MOYNIHAN) introduced the following bill; which was

read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and

Forestry

A BILL

To amend the Agricultural Market Transition Act to convert

the price support program for sugarcane and sugar beets

into a system of solely recourse loans and to provide

for the gradual elimination of the program.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. RECOURSE LOANS FOR PROCESSORS OF SUG4 ARCANE AND SUGAR BEETS AND REDUCTION

5 IN LOAN RATES.

6 (a) GRADUAL REDUCTION IN LOAN RATES.—
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1 (1) SUGARCANE PROCESSOR LOANS.—Section

2 156(a) of the Agricultural Market Transition Act (7

3 U.S.C. 7272(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘equal to 18

4 cents per pound for raw cane sugar.’’ and inserting

5 the following: ‘‘, per pound for raw cane sugar, equal

6 to the following:

7 ‘‘(1) In the case of raw cane sugar processed

8 from the 1996, 1997, or 1998 crop, $0.18.

9 ‘‘(2) In the case of raw cane sugar processed

10 from the 1999 crop, $0.17.

11 ‘‘(3) In the case of raw cane sugar processed

12 from the 2000 crop, $0.16.

13 ‘‘(4) In the case of raw cane sugar processed

14 from the 2001 crop, $0.15.

15 ‘‘(5) In the case of raw cane sugar processed

16 from the 2002 crop, $0.14.’’.

17 (2) SUGAR BEET PROCESSOR LOANS.—Section

18 156(b) of the Agricultural Market Transition Act (7

19 U.S.C. 7272(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘equal to

20 22.9 cents per pound for refined beet sugar.’’ and

21 inserting the following: ‘‘, per pound of refined beet

22 sugar, that reflects—

23 ‘‘(1) an amount that bears the same relation to

24 the loan rate in effect under subsection (a) for a

25 crop as the weighted average of producer returns for
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1 sugar beets bears to the weighted average of pro2 ducer returns for sugarcane, expressed on a cents

3 per pound basis for refined beet sugar and raw cane

4 sugar, for the most recent 5-year period for which

5 data are available; and

6 ‘‘(2) an amount that covers sugar beet proc7 essor fixed marketing expenses.’’.

8 (b) CONVERSION TO RECOURSE LOANS.—Section

9 156(e) of the Agricultural Market Transition Act (7

10 U.S.C. 7272(e)) is amended—

11 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘only’’ after

12 ‘‘this section’’; and

13 (2) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3) and in14 serting the following:

15 ‘‘(2) NATIONAL LOAN RATES.—Recourse loans

16 under this section shall be made available at all loca17 tions nationally at the rates specified in this section,

18 without adjustment to provide regional differen19 tials.’’.

20 (c) CONVERSION TO PRIVATE SECTOR FINANCING.—

21 Section 156 of the Agricultural Market Transition Act (7

22 U.S.C. 7272) is amended—

23 (1) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection

24 (j);
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1 (2) by inserting after subsection (h) the fol2 lowing:

3 ‘‘(i) CONVERSION TO PRIVATE SECTOR FINANC4 ING.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law—

5 ‘‘(1) no processor of any of the 2003 or subse6 quent crops of sugarcane or sugar beets shall be eli7 gible for a loan under this section with respect to

8 the crops; and

9 ‘‘(2) the Secretary may not make price support

10 available, whether in the form of loans, payments,

11 purchases, or other operations, for any of the 2003

12 and subsequent crops of sugar beets and sugarcane

13 by using the funds of the Commodity Credit Cor14 poration or other funds available to the Secretary.’’;

15 and

16 (3) in subsection (j) (as redesignated by para17 graph (1)) by striking ‘‘subsection (f)’’ and inserting

18 ‘‘subsections (f) and (i)’’.

19 (d) TERMINATION OF MARKETING QUOTAS AND AL20 LOTMENTS.—

21 (1) TERMINATION.—Part VII of subtitle B of

22 title III of the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938

23 (7 U.S.C. 1359aa et seq.) is repealed.

24 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section

25 344(f)(2) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act of
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1 1938 (7 U.S.C. 1344(f)(2)) is amended by striking

2 ‘‘sugar cane for sugar, sugar beets for sugar,’’.

3 (e) OTHER CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

4 (1) PRICE SUPPORT FOR NONBASIC AGRICUL5 TURAL COMMODITIES.—

6 (A) DESIGNATED NONBASIC AGRICUL7 TURAL COMMODITIES.—Section 201(a) of the

8 Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C. 1446(a)) is

9 amended by striking ‘‘milk, sugar beets, and

10 sugarcane’’ and inserting ‘‘, and milk’’.

11 (B) OTHER NONBASIC AGRICULTURAL

12 COMMODITIES.—Section 301 of the Agricultural

13 Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C. 1447) is amended by in14 serting ‘‘(other than sugarcane and sugar

15 beets)’’ after ‘‘title II’’.

16 (2) POWERS OF COMMODITY CREDIT CORPORA17 TION.—Section 5(a) of the Commodity Credit Cor18 poration Charter Act (15 U.S.C. 714c(a)) is amend19 ed by inserting ‘‘(except for the 2003 and subse20 quent crops of sugarcane and sugar beets)’’ after

21 ‘‘agricultural commodities’’.

22 (3) SECTION 32 ACTIVITIES.—Section 32 of the

23 Act of August 24, 1935 (7 U.S.C. 612c), is amended

24 in the second sentence of the first paragraph by in-
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1 serting ‘‘(other than sugarcane and sugar beets)’’

2 after ‘‘commodity’’ the last place it appears.

3 (f) ASSURANCE OF ADEQUATE SUPPLIES OF

4 SUGAR.—Section 902 of the Food Security Act of 1985

5 (7 U.S.C. 1446g note; Public Law 99–198) is amended

6 by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning with the quota year

8 for sugar imports that begins after the 1998/1999 quota

9 year, the President shall use all authorities available to

10 the President as may be necessary to enable the Secretary

11 of Agriculture to ensure that adequate supplies of raw

12 cane sugar are made available to the United States market

13 at prices that are not greater than the higher of—

14 ‘‘(1) the world sugar price (adjusted to a deliv15 ered basis); or

16 ‘‘(2) the raw cane sugar loan rate in effect

17 under section 156 of the Agricultural Market Tran18 sition Act (7 U.S.C. 7272), plus interest.’’.

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