Evening star., 1949-09-26
Senate 10 Study
Anderson Bill
Prices
Action on Supports
To Follow Vote on
Military Pay
BY the Asseeiated Press

With an anxious eye at the
farm vote. the Senate is about
to come to grips with long range
Legislation underwriting crop
prices.
A compromise bill to establish
a flexible price-support program,
drafted by Senator Anderson,
Democrat, of New Mexico, is slated
for action as soon as the Senate
disposes Of pay raise measures
for the Armed Services and civil
ian Federal employees.
The compromise would continue
Government price props for basic
crops at 80 per cent of parity for
another year, but after that the
support level could drop to rs per
cent Of parity if production out
ran demand.
Parity is a price calculated to
give farmers a fair return for
what they grow in terms Of what
they have to buy.
Aiken Law Outlined.
A sliding scale of price sup
ports, ranging from so to 80 per
cent Of parity. is to go into effect
January l under the Aiken law
passed last year unless the pres
ent Congress enacts new farm
legislation.
The House already has passed .
bill junking the Aiken law and
simply continuing for another
year the high wartime level Of
price supports-90 per cent Of
parity for most major crops.
The Senate Agriculture Com
mittee said in approving the bill
worked out by Senator Anderson,
former Secretary of Agriculture.
that the time has come to put the
Nations farm program on per-
manent peacetime basis.
1t said "the flexibility of sup
port levels and the coordination
of price supports with production
controls" Is essential now that the
extraordinary wartime demand for
farm products has passed.
A move already has developed
in the Senate, however, to peg tho
support level at 80 per cent for six
basic crops-wheat. corn, cotton,
tobacco, rice and peanuts-if
acreage allotments or marketing
quotas are in effect.
Amendment Planned.
Senator Russell, Democrat, Of
Georgia. and Young. Republican,
Of North Dakota announced they
would offer this amendment and
predicted 1t would be accepted.
An effort also may be made to
write authority in the bill for
Secretary Of Agriculture Brannan
to make trial run, on one or more
crops, Of his production payments
plan.
He has proposed that the prices
of perishable crops be permitted to
drop totheir market level and that
the Government compensate
farmers by direct subsidy pay
ments.
The House rejected even trial
run for Mr.. Brannan's idea. 1t
also was shunted aside in the Sen
ate Agriculture Committee.
Republican leaders who sounded
out Midwest farm sentiment at q
two-day conference in Sioux City.
Iowa. last week said they expected
the Brannan plan to give them an
issue with which they can re-
capture the farm vote.
Truman Backs Move.
President Truman put in a plug
for the plan in his Labor Day
speeches and has indicated he will
use it as a talking point in the 1850
congressional campaign.
Senator Anderson said yesterday
the Brannan plan is wholly
new farm program" and why the
administration has got started on
it he does not know.
"As a matter of fact, think the
farm program from 1888 on has
been a pretty fair program. said
Senator Anderson, in a radio
broadcast.
Meanwhile. the administration
plan got a boost from Mr.. Bran
nan himself, who said, speaking
separately in a broadcast of Labor's
League for Political Education:
"All we propose now is that we
change the present program which
Is subject to the criticism that we
use taxpayers money to maintain
high prices so that consumers have
to buy the commodities at high
prices in the market place."
Senator Anderson predicted that
his own farm bill would be adopted
and that the House might accept
it. If so, he said, II have no fear
that we'll run into a presidential
Veto"