By U.S. Senator Deb Fischer

** Audio recording unavailable due to the fall state work period**

This time of year, you often hear the steady hum of combines working late into the night. Trucks haul corn, soybeans, and dry beans, among other crops, reaping the benefits of productive land and hard work. During harvest, Nebraska’s farm families are busy doing what they do best: feeding the world.

The bustle of harvest reminds us that agriculture is the economic engine of Nebraska. All our citizens benefit from strong production agriculture and the revenue generated by the many businesses related to our farms. The ag industry is a major job creator. In fact, it provides one in three jobs statewide.

Nebraska’s ag producers know that earning a living from the land can be rewarding. They also know there are many challenges that come with it: worries over prices, equipment, and the anxious eye we keep on the sky, to name only a few.

For many of our farm families, times are tough right now. Farm income has fallen for the third year in a row. Corn prices have dropped by half; soybeans prices have fallen by about as much. All the while, input costs creep higher.

In 2015, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) illegally issued new standards affecting retail fertilizer facilities that provide anhydrous ammonia, a critical fertilizer used by a majority of farm families. If retailers could not produce the paperwork needed to comply with the new standard, they would be required to purchase new anhydrous ammonia storage tanks, at an average starting cost of $70,000. Those costs would then be passed on to farmers, affecting margins that are already tight.

Few of Washington’s regulators are familiar with anhydrous ammonia; nearly all of Nebraska knows it is the most cost-effective and commonly used fertilizer in production agriculture. It is an essential input that allows farmers to produce more food while using less land, less water, and yes, even less fertilizer.

This is just one example of why, since taking office, I have worked continuously to reduce burdensome federal regulations on ag producers. On this issue, I have introduced legislation that would force OSHA to follow the law regarding exemptions for anhydrous ammonia storage.

In September, the Senate passed the Water Resources Development Act by a strong, bipartisan vote of 95 to 3. This bill included a provision, which I negotiated and championed, that modifies the EPA’s costly Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) rule. This regulation could negatively affect ag producers with on-farm fuel storage. My provision would provide producers with greater access and flexibility to on-farm fuel storage. It would also alleviate burdens for livestock producers by completely exempting animal feed ingredient tanks from the SPCC regulations.

As a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, I have worked to ensure constant oversight over the EPA and its onerous, and, oftentimes, unlawful activities. For example, after the agency illegally did aerial surveillance over our state, I signed on to legislation that would prevent the EPA from disclosing private information about Nebraska farmers and ranchers. 

I also continue to hold the EPA accountable for its “Waters of the United States” or WOTUS rule that threatens the economic security of Nebraska’s farm families. I am a cosponsor of several pieces of legislation to stop this harmful rule in its tracks. In 2015, I hosted a U.S. Senate field hearing in Lincoln where we heard from a diverse group of stakeholders, including representatives from the agriculture community, about the negative effects of the WOTUS rule.

Finally, I am committed to supporting a strong crop insurance program and other farm safety net programs that are critical risk management tools for farming operations.

There’s no getting around it: Nebraska farm families are facing a tough farm economy. I understand their plight. We have the best ag producers in world and I believe their planning and risk management practices will see them through this difficult period.  I will continue to lead and support legislation to give our producers the ability to continue to produce safe, high-quality crops and livestock, while also reducing harmful federal regulations.

Thank you for participating in the democratic process. I look forward to visiting with you again next week.