Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today sent a letter to Farm Bill conferees strongly urging them to reach an agreement on the controversial Farm Bill provisions rather than consider another long-term extension of the expired 2008 Farm Bill. Thune said in his letter, “An unfinished Farm Bill will continue the highly... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), member of the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation, Forestry and Natural Resources, today questioned the witness panel about pine beetle infestation management at a hearing today titled, “Shortchanging Our Forests: How Tight Budgets and Management Decisions Can Increase the Risk of Wildfire.” Key witnesses at today’s... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today applauded the appointment of House Farm Bill conferees by Speaker of the House, John Boehner (R-Ohio). On October 8th, Thune sent a letter to Speaker Boehner calling on him to appoint Farm Bill conferees so that Farm Bill Conference Committee negotiations could begin as soon... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today made the following statement regarding the Senate passage of the Agriculture Reform, Jobs and Food Act (S. 954): “The Senate missed an important opportunity today to improve federal agriculture policy by passing a Farm Bill with a problematic commodity title and which fails to rein... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) this week again called on the Obama administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to answer for leaking approximately 80,000 farmers and ranchers’ personal data to left-wing environmental groups. Thune joined a bipartisan group of senators in a letter to the EPA requesting answers on the leaked data.... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today issued a statement following the Senate Agriculture Committee’s markup of the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2013: “Today’s markup is just the beginning of drafting the 2013 Farm Bill,” said Thune. “The current climate of budgetary and fiscal restraint requires that we subject... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) yesterday sent a letter along with several of his colleagues to Acting U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Ambassador, Demetrios Marantis, and Acting Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce, Rebecca Blank, urging them to evaluate a recent decision by the European Commission (E.C.) to impose a country-wide... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) and Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) today introduced legislation that would modify crop insurance premium assistance for insured crops grown on native sod converted to cropland and land that a producer cannot verify has ever been tilled. The Congressional Budget Office projects that this bill could save... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) and Congressman Marlin Stutzman (R-Ind.) today introduced legislation that would save $30 billion over 10 years from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by eliminating loopholes, waste, fraud, and abuse, while ensuring those who meet the current income and asset eligibility requirements continue to receive the... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today sent a letter to the Acting Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Bob Perciasepe, to express his concerns about the EPA release of personal information of approximately 80,000 agriculture producers to environmental groups, including more than 500 farms and ranches in South Dakota. This... Continue Reading
U.S. Senators Mark Pryor (D-AR), Jerry Moran (R-KS), John Thune (R-SD), Tom Udall (D-NM), and Mark Udall (D-CO) today introduced legislation to reauthorize the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), which provides vital drought information to farmers, ranchers, and other industries affected by weather conditions. The NIDIS program is a... Continue Reading
U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today spearheaded a letter signed by a bipartisan group of Senators to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. The Senators’ letter requests that the Grain, Inspection and Packers and Stockyards Administration investigate recent unusually high differences between the prices sheep producers are receiving and over-the-counter prices... Continue Reading
