The House has voted to reauthorizing Mandatory Livestock Price Reporting through 2020.  The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the National Pork Producers Council applaud this bill, saying it will ensure cattle producers have access to critical market information.

“We thank the members of the House in passing this important legislation to ensure cattlemen and women have access to market information,” said NCBA President Ellis. “Failure to act would have left cattle producers nationwide without critical price information at a very significant time in the marketing year.”

“America’s pork producers urge President Obama to sign into law this important legislation, which provides producers and meat packers transparent, accurate and timely national market information to make knowledge-based business decisions about selling and buying hogs,” writes NPPC President Dr. Ron Prestage.

Mandatory Price Reporting requires meat packers to report to USDA the prices they pay for cattle, hogs and sheep purchased from farmers and ranchers for slaughter, as well as the prices they receive for the sale of wholesale beef, pork and lamb. Mandatory Price Reporting also requires USDA to issue daily, weekly and monthly livestock and meat market reports.

“Unfortunately for America’s cattle producers, Senator Stabenow did not feel this legislation warranted an ‘essential government service’ designation, which makes market transparency vulnerable to future government service interruptions,” said Ellis. “Had the Senator acted in accord with the original provisions in the House bill, we could have been assured price information would not be subject to political whim.”

The bill must now be signed into law by the President before it expires Sept. 30, 2015.