Green Scissors Agriculture Sector

Green Scissors Agriculture Target

The federal government spends billions of dollars each year on agricultural programs that were established during the Great Depression. These programs were originally intended to support domestic crop production by stabilizing farm income, propping up agricultural prices at levels above world market rates, and controlling the production of designated crops. Over time, however, the original goals of these programs have been distorted. Now, instead of supporting the livelihood of the small family farmer, these programs benefit large corporate farms, and place massive and unnecessary costs on the American taxpayer. Additionally, many of these programs encourage the use of environmentally harmful agricultural practices such as over-production, farming on marginal lands, and intense chemical use.

In 2002, Congress passed the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act (2002 farm bill), which reinstated flawed farm policies from the past, and increased agriculture spending by more than 50 percent. This was seen by many as a disingenuous attempt by a number of farm-state lawmakers to bring home the bacon in an election year; leaving many to question the true motives behind the current direction of U.S. farm policy. By offering taxpayer-financed crop subsidies, some of which increase in proportion to crop acreages; large farms are encouraged to increase production in order to receive additional federal funds. This incentive has created a cycle that leads the largest growers (and subsidy recipients) to buy as much land as they can from smaller, independent family farm operations that can no longer compete with them for business. This is surely not the end result our Depression-Era lawmakers intended.

The Green Scissors Campaign is targeting these programs for elimination or significant reform.




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