As the heat continues to build this summer in Washington, D.C., so does tension over two frequently-discussed issues that will affect the horse and agriculture industry. The American Horse Council's (AHC) quarterly webinar series recently held a virtual discussion titled “Understanding the Farm Bill and the 'Right to Repair'” sponsored by Jarvis Insurance with the aim to answer any questions the public might have regarding those two pieces of legislation.
The webinar, which was live via Zoom on July 17, began with a discussion on the 2023 Farm Bill led by Brigid Shea, Government Affairs Liaison for the AHC, and guest speaker Justina Graff, Senior Legislative assistant at the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture.
Graff is the Senior Legislative Assistant to Representative G.T. Thompson (R-PA) and has worked alongside him since February 2023. Prior to that, she lobbied on behalf of the coalition to promote U.S. agricultural exports, the National Milk Producers Federation and the Organic Produce Association.
The 2023 Farm Bill is a critical piece of legislation that is renewed every five years. The Farm Bill covers everything from farmer support to community food access and was initially signed into law in 1933 to have a safety net for producers coming out of the Great Depression. The House and Senate Committees on Agriculture are currently holding hearings, reviewing budget and program submissions, and honing their math skills as the spending requests approach the $1 trillion mark.
“I think you'd be hard-pressed to find another piece of legislation like this that spends a certain amount of money and will have such a great return on investment,” said Graff on the proposed $1 trillion budget. “It is a driving force for the ag industry and the overall economy as a whole.”
The AHC is currently working to ensure the interests of the entire horse industry are well represented through requests for funding within the bill. This includes requesting equine-specific funding for the various vaccine and health monitoring programs that are critical to protecting the national herd health as well as requesting USDA funding to conduct a horse census – a systematic count of the population of horses within the United States.
The discussion helped listeners to understand the legislative process of writing and passing the 2023 Farm Bill. Other topics discussed included how stakeholders can get involved in the discussion, what the horse industry is requesting be included in the Farm Bill, as well as the current expected timeline for legislative decision making.
“The majority of the livestock and animal welfare provisions are done within Title 12 of the Farm Bill, which is the Miscellaneous Provision,” explained Graff. “We are lucky that the Ag Committee has a working bipartisan relationship, which in today's political climate, it's not necessarily normal. There are about 30 Republicans and 15 Democrats on the Committee.”
Graff pointed out that the work done by the AHC and other parties is vital for a successful Farm Bill passing.
“One of the key things here is what you do from the education side to Congress is absolutely critical.,” she said. “There's about 200 members of the House that have never voted on the Farm Bill and about a quarter of the Senate who have never voted on the Farm Bill. It is obviously our job as staff to educate the members, but we really rely on industry to do exactly what the AHC does, come to D.C., and meet with committee staff and members of staff that are off the committee. At the end of the day, it takes 218 votes in the House to pass the Farm Bill.”
The second half of the webinar was a discussion on “Right to Repair” led by Emily Stearns, Health, Welfare, and Regulatory Affairs Liaison for the AHC, and Emily Buckman, Director, Government Affairs for the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).
“Right to Repair” is a consumer protection that allows a person to freely modify and repair products such as automobiles, electronics, and farm equipment. National concerns associated with a consumer's “Right to Repair” center around a manufacturer's ability to limit access to repair manuals and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts, as well as high costs and wait times associated with waiting for manufacturer certified technicians to complete repairs.
Currently, manufacturers can void warranties if a consumer is found to have repaired their personally-owned property. While there is no Federal “Right to Repair” legislation, some areas such as Colorado have passed rules at the state level.
The discussion explored the current “Right to Repair” protections that exist, including Memorandum's of Understanding (MOUs) recently finalized between AFBF and several equipment manufacturers that help protect owners of agriculture equipment.
The webinar closed with Julie Broadway, AHC President, highlighting the importance of the AHC's Equine Economic Impact Study in helping to educate lawmakers at the federal level on the national impact of the horse industry. The results of the current study will help all those involved with horses across the country impress upon their local and federal legislators the importance of including horses in critical funding initiatives like the 2023 Farm Bill. The surveys collecting information for the Economic Impact Study run through the end of September 2023 and are open for all horse owners and business owners to complete.
Watch the webinar in its entirety on the AHC's YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4Y7vnz62pA
The AHC hosts educational webinars quarterly that are open for all to attend. The webinar series helps everyone involved with horses understand a variety of regulatory, legislative, and welfare topics across the industry. To view the most recent webinar recording in its entirety, or to participate in the 2023 AHC Economic Impact Study, visit AHC at horsecouncil.org
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