Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolff took a stand for his state today, requesting Congress to extend the deadline for the milk income loss contract program.
To date, the program has provided more than $220 million in federal support to help many Pennsylvania dairy farmers stay in business during periods of extremely low milk prices.
“Dairy is the largest part of Pennsylvania’s agricultural industry, and the milk income loss contract program has helped sustain farmers with funding vital to maintaining their businesses,” said Wolff. “To ensure the future of Pennsylvania’s dairy industry, a one-month extension must be authorized for the milk income loss contract program so it can be continued through the 2007 Farm Bill.”
If extended through Sept. 30, the milk income loss contract program will be included as part of the Farm Bill baseline and it will maintain an adequate level of funding during the 2007 Farm Bill consideration period.
The program can be extended as part of the supplemental appropriations bill, which will be considered by the appropriations committees in the coming days. The milk income loss contract program was originally enacted in 2002 under the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act and was extended to Aug. 31, 2007, through the 2006 Budget Reconciliation Bill.