Page 73 - MFB State Annual Meeting 2018 -- RESOLUTIONS BOOK

8.1.35. The Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) be combined with the FMNP Senior program that is already part of the Farm Bill;
8.1.36. A cottonseed and/or cotton lint farm program that provides an option for generic base acres to be reallocated to a new cotton farm program. In the process of reallocation, generic base acres that have been in agricultural use but not planted to an ARC/PLC crop must be allowed to maintain their base acres. If cottonseed and/or cotton lint are not included as Title I farm program commodities, we support annual appropriations for a ginning assistance program;
8.1.37. Modifying or eliminating the Stacked Income Protection Program (STAX) if cottonseed and/or cotton lint are included as Title I ARC/PLC farm program commodity(s);
8.1.38. Voluntary base acreage and yield updating in the next Farm Bill, and a one-time opportunity for beginning farmers to obtain base acres for fields without
existing base;
8.1.39. The use of commodity certificates for repaying loans for all
program commodities;
8.1.40. A 90-day lock-in period for marketing loan gains for all
commodities;
8.1.41. Maintaining the ARC-Individual program;
8.1.42. Collaborating with USDA on how the Specialty Crop Block
Grant Program (SCBGP) funds can be better spread among numerous entities and an appeals process for grants that have been awarded;
8.1.43. The current use of SCBGP funds for market promotion and research and not for implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The FSMA congressional mandate must be funded through the Food and Drug Administration budget;
8.1.44. The exemption of growers from the registration and reporting requirements associated with the System for Award Management;
8.1.45. Eliminating the reporting requirement for non-program grass waterways/fallow areas that are baled for forage;
8.1.46. Continuation of the Good Neighbor Authority (forestry) program;
8.1.47. The use of a longer deadline period for conservation compliance first time farmer exceptions; and
8.1.48. When farm program benefits are denied due to an alleged violation and the enforcement action is decided in the respondent’s favor, we support changes in the law to require the government agency to be responsible to pay the respondent’s legal fees and any denied benefits for the unsubstantiated claim.
8.2. We oppose:
8.2.1.Producers becoming ineligible for participation in any USDA
program due to their participation in federal or state water
projects;
8.2.2.Compliance status of one farm affecting the ability to receive
benefits on another farm;
8.2.3.The extension of the CCC commodity loans beyond the current
term;
8.2.4.The system of anonymous reporting of operator violations to
the FSA and NRCS;
8.2.5.The use of conservation programs by entities unrelated to
agriculture;
8.2.6.Penalties for farm program violations being applied to the entire
farm operation instead of the portion of the farm in question;
and
8.2.7.The Data Universal Number System being a requirement for
participation in farm, conservation and other USDA programs. 
AFBF Policies – Page 17