We had a great week in DC with a great small group.  We had 14 CIPA members from some strategic regions across the country covering some significant ground, waving the banner for crop insurance generally, and speaking to issues of concern on the Hill right now.  

We had more than 60 appointments with Members of the House and Senate and their staff, along with some key USDA, RMA, and FSA officials.  As you can see from the picture below, even by the third day, the group was holding up pretty well.  This picture was taken on the balcony of the House Agriculture Committee with Chairman Mike Conaway (R-TX) with the Capitol (under restoration) in the background.  

Among the many issues discussed, CIPA fly-in participants expressed concern over conservation compliance and were very pleased to hear first-hand about the provision in the Agriculture Appropriations bill that would suspend any penalties, providing producers until June 30, 2016 to come into compliance while also offering USDA more time to get the rule right.  This provision is not yet law, as it must still be agreed to by our Senate and the President.  But it is good for producers, good for crop insurance, and good for the proponents of this provision because the latter should want a smooth rollout.

Our message was fairly simple.  You may read our 1-page leave behind here.  But, most importantly, we built and cultivated some relationships that will help us when we join in battle next time.

The House of Representatives passed legislation on Tuesday, June 9th to reauthorize the CEA through 2019. House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway (R-TX) said the bill “provides relief from unnecessary red tape for the businesses that make things in our country.” On Thursday, Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) introduced bipartisan legislation that would ensure farmers and ranchers are not jeopardized by any reinterpretations of CEA regulations. The Senate Agriculture Committee plans to incorporate this legislation into a larger CEA reauthorization package later this year. Congress last passed a CEA reauthorization during the 2008 Farm Bill, but the authorization expired in 2013. Read more from The Hill and here.  

On Tuesday, June 9th, the House of Representatives passed three agricultural measures by voice vote. Passage of the Mandatory Price Reporting Act, the U.S. Grain Standards Reauthorization Act, and the National Forest Foundation Reauthorization Act completes the House Agriculture Committee’s reauthorization work for the year. House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway’ (R-TX) first goal as Chairman was to complete all of the Committee’s reauthorization work in a timely way. He said, "I am pleased to have the support of my colleagues on these bills that are essential to the agriculture industry. This completes our work in cleaning up the books of the House Agriculture Committee, addressing every item on the Congressional Budget Office's list of unauthorized appropriations under the Committee's jurisdiction." Read more from Farm Futures.   

The USDA held a briefing to update stakeholders on changes made to the Conservation Compliance Interim Final Rule which will be published in the Federal Register on April 20th and should be posted to this page on RMA’s website April 16th. A document that was handed out at the briefing detailing the changes made may be viewed here. Remember, in order to participate in Federal Crop Insurance, all producers and qualifying affiliated persons must have an AD-1026 on file with FSA by June 1, 2015. 

Click on this link to view CIPA's comments to RMA regarding the proposed changes to Prevented Planting Policy Provisions and Payment Factors.

The piece lays important groundwork for why agriculture should be exempt from further cuts as this process moves forward.  We would encourage you to read it by going to the link, and comment on it (these comment sections are typically dominated by whackos, but it is always good to get some positive reinforcement mixed in . . . a simple "well put — the situation in rural economies is tough right now" or something along those lines would be good).  

We would also encourage you to forward it along, or post it to Twitter or Facebook if you operate in the social media world.

CIPA hosted a series of two webinars by the creators of the web tools designed to aid producers in making their risk management decisions under the 2014 Farm Bill. This was a great opportunity for CIPA members and their staff to get a full preview of the features of these tools so that they can use them to help their clients make the best choices for their risk management portfolio. If you missed the webinar, or would like to view it again they can be accessed at the links below. Special thanks to Dr. Joe Outlaw with Texas A&M University and Jonathan Coppess with the University of Illinois for being willing to make special presentations for CIPA.

Recordings of the two webinars can be found in the policy resources section of the members area. 

Thank you to all who attended the CIPA Fall Meeting in Nashville, TN October 26-28! The meeting was a huge success and was our most widely attended meeting yet with over 140 CIPA members, sponsors, and guests. Attendees heard from an all star line up of speakers which included RMA Associate Administrator Michael Alston, FFAS Deputy Undersecretary Karis Gutter, political prognosticator and House Editor of the Cook Political Report David Wasserman, among many others. Also, we were very honored to have rising star Congressman Stephen Fincher of Tennessee speak at the Monday luncheon. 

CIPA members can view the agenda and presentations in the policy resources section of the members area.

Be on the lookout for more information about the Fall 2015 meeting which I am sure will be another excellent event.  

Thank you to everyone who attended the 2014 CIPA Annual Membership Meeting held on May 5-6 in Kansas City, Missouri. We had over 100 attendees at the meeting, making it one of our most well attended meetings to date.

At the general session we had a number of great speakers, including economists Dr. Art Barnaby and Dr. Joe Outlaw, Tim Hoffmann with RMA, and NCIS President Dr. Tom Zacharias. CIPA members may find their presentations in the Policy Resources area of the CIPA website.

The Bill Hanson, CIPA, Memorial Scholarship presentation was a particularly special moment of the meeting as Carol Hanson made the drive from Manhattan to join us. Over $27,000 has been raised for the scholarship to date to go towards scholarships in honor of Bill. If you would like to make a contribution, instructions are provided under the Scholarship tab of the CIPA website.

The CIPA PAC event at the meeting was a huge success. Between the dinner, auction and other donations, we brought in over $65,000 in contributions for the PAC! This far and away eclipsed our total from our inaugural event in 2013. Our goal is to have a $100K PAC this year, and while we are well on our way to reaching that goal, we still need everyone to pitch in. Thank you to everyone who has donated so far.

The CIPA Fall Membership Meeting will be held in Nashville, Tennessee on October 26-28. If you are interested in attending the meeting and are not a member of CIPA, visit the CIPA membership page for more information about joining or contact us at 202-544-5873.