Sinema Statement on Bipartisan Farm Bill

WASHINGTON, Jan. 29 -- Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz. (9th CD), issued the following news release:

Today, Congresswoman Sinema voted in support of a five-year Farm Bill, a product of months of bipartisan negotiations in Congress. The Farm Bill authorizes funding for a variety of agriculture and nutrition programs that support Arizona families and farmers.

"Last year, I called on Congress to put partisan games aside and pass a complete, bipartisan Farm Bill," said Sinema. "While this bill is not a perfect agreement, it is the result of both sides coming together to provide certainty for Arizona farmers and families."

"I voted for this bill because it makes needed reforms to our farm programs. It ends the direct payments program that pays farmers whether they farm or not - this currently costs taxpayers around $4.5 billion annually. It requires farmers to meet conservation requirements in order to receive crop insurance premium subsidies, and renews important programs for beginning farmers and organic agriculture. This agreement also restores most of the $40 billion in cuts initially proposed to federal nutrition funding, cuts I worked to reverse for hungry Arizona families, and children. As a result, there will be no cuts to Arizona's share of federal nutrition funding. Arizona families will continue to receive the assistance they need to put food on the table."

"Also included in this agreement is a bipartisan amendment that I introduced with Republican Congressman Doug LaMalfa of California. Our amendment protects Arizona small businesses by providing an additional, commonsense safeguard against foreign agribusinesses that fraudulently use American trademarks to mislabel their produce. I will continue to work toward reasonable solutions that provide certainty for our families and our businesses, reduce our deficit in a responsible manner, and create much-needed jobs for hardworking Arizonans."

The Farm Bill, officially known as the Agriculture Act of 2014, passed the House by a bipartisan majority of 251 to 166.

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