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Agroterrorism: Options in Congress

Description: Although U.S. intelligence agencies have not identified any terrorist acts targeting agricultural production (i.e., agroterrorism) in the United States to date, the events of September 11, 2001 have awakened the nation to their possibility. Some experts estimate that a single agroterrorist attack using a highly contagious livestock disease could cost between $10 billion and $30 billion to the U.S. economy. This report examines the potential threats to America’s agriculture from a deliberate bio… more
Date: December 19, 2001
Creator: Segarra, Alejandro E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Appropriations for FY2002: U.S. Department of Agriculture and Related Agencies

Description: This report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress passes each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Agriculture by summarizing the current legislative status of the bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related legislative activity. The report also lists the key CRS staff relevant to the issues covered and related CRS products.
Date: December 3, 2001
Creator: Chite, Ralph M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agriculture in Afghanistan and Neighboring Asian Countries

Description: Agriculture (as measured by share of gross domestic product and employment) is a significant economic sector in seven Central and South Asian countries: Afghanistan, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. All of these countries are net food importers. Some have experienced successive years of drought, which has contributed to noticeable declines in agricultural output and the need to increase commodity imports. The United Nations’ World Food Program reports that b… more
Date: November 16, 2001
Creator: Jurenas, Remy
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Changing Structure of Agriculture and Rural America: Emerging Opportunities and Challenges

Description: This report provides an overview of Contemporary Rural America. The report discusses the changes that are likely to pose important questions about the direction and coherence of current rural policy. Several significant trends in this evolving structure of agriculture are discussed in this report: (1) a continuation in the trend toward fewer and larger farms; (2) a potential acceleration of that trend as production shifts to more tightly integrated and vertically coordinated production through … more
Date: October 30, 2001
Creator: Cowan, Tadlock
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Farm Commodity Programs: A Short Primer

Description: This report briefly discusses programs designed to provide income support, price support, and/or supply management for approximately 20 specified agricultural commodities. USDA farm support programs represent the heart of U.S. farm policy, by virtue of their longevity – they have existed since the early 1930s – and their cost.
Date: September 14, 2001
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Farm Labor Shortages and Immigration Policy

Description: This report first explains why the nexus between farm labor shortages and immigration policy has again arisen. It next examines the composition of the seasonal agricultural labor force and presents the arguments of grower and farmworker advocates concerning its adequacy relative to employer demand. The report closes with an analysis of the trends in (un)employment, time worked and wages of legal and illegal farmworkers to determine if they are consistent with the existence of a nationwide short… more
Date: September 6, 2001
Creator: Levine, Linda
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Livestock Mandatory Price Reporting

Description: This report summarizes the steps taken by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to execute the Livestock Mandatory Price Reporting (LMPR) law which was enforced to provide more information and disclosure on pricing. Updated August 15, 2001.
Date: August 15, 2001
Creator: Heykoop, Jerry
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Impoundment and Sale of Cattle Trespassing on Federal Public Lands

Description: This report explores the authority of BLM personnel regarding unauthorized cattle by reviewing the statutory authorities of BLM over the federal rangelands under its administration, and the regulations and administrative materials implementing those authorities in the context of grazing, trespass, impoundment and sale of unauthorized livestock.
Date: August 14, 2001
Creator: Baldwin, Pamela
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Farm Support Programs and World Trade Commitments

Description: Congress is now debating reauthorization of omnibus farm legislation, as most commodityprice support provisions expire in 2002. This report discusses this debate, specifically aspects relating to commitments that the U.S. has as a World Trade Organization (WTO) member. Because of the interrelationships between trade and domestic support policies, lawmakers are interested in what the Agreement on Agriculture stipulates with regard to domestic supports, and how not only the United States but also… more
Date: July 20, 2001
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agricultural Export and Food Aid Programs

Description: This report discusses projected agricultural imports and exports for FY2001, as well as legislation that deals with federal programs in support of agricultural exports and federal aid dedicated to farms and agricultural reform.
Date: May 30, 2001
Creator: Hanrahan, Charles E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agricultural Trade Issues in the 107th Congress

Description: The 107th Congress will consider and seek to influence trade issues with implications for the U.S. agricultural sector. Trade in agricultural commodities and food products affects farm income and rural employment, and it also generates economic activity beyond the farm gate. With agricultural export sales accounting for one-quarter of farm income, policymakers view U.S. efforts to develop market opportunities overseas as vital to the sector's financial health. Decisions taken by the Bush Admini… more
Date: May 25, 2001
Creator: Hanrahan, Charles E.; Jurenas, Remy & Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Conservation Reserve Program: Status and Current Issues

Description: The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), enacted in 1985, enables producers to retire highly erodible or environmentally sensitive cropland, usually for 10 years. Congress reauthorized and amended the CRP in the 1996 Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act (P.L. 104-127; 16 U.S.C. 3811, et seq.). The law caps enrollment at 36.4 million acres and makes funding mandatory through the commodity Credit Corporation.
Date: May 8, 2001
Creator: Zinn, Jeffrey A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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What Is a Farm Bill?

Description: A farmbill is a collection of new laws and amendmentsto longstanding lawsthat sets the overall direction of federal food and farm policy for a specified number of years. Farm bills typically contain not only commodity price and income support provisions, but also provisions on agricultural trade, rural development, domestic food assistance, foreign food aid, conservation, crop insurance, farm credit, forestry, and agricultural research. The many issues covered by farm bills make it possible to … more
Date: May 5, 2001
Creator: Jones, Jean Yavis; Hanrahan, Charles E. & Womach, Jasper
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Energy Costs and Agriculture

Description: U.S. agriculture is not an especially energy-intensive industry, but energy does account for about 6% of farm production costs. Additionally, farming is a highly mechanized industry and requires timely energy supplies at particular stages of the production cycle in order to achieve optimum yields. A substantial part of energy use by agriculture is indirect —embodied in the chemicals applied and machinery used on farms.
Date: April 24, 2001
Creator: Heykoop, Jerry
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Pesticide Residue Regulation: Analysis of Food Quality Protection Act Implementation

Description: This report discusses the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA) which amened the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), governing U.S. registration, sale, and use of pesticide products, and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) under which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets allowable pesticide residue levels for food (tolerances).
Date: April 20, 2001
Creator: Schierow, Linda-Jo
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Animal Agriculture: Current Issues

Description: A variety of animal agriculture issues, including low livestock prices, the impact of consolidation in the meat packing industry, trade, and the environmental impacts of large feedlots, generated interest in the 106th and 107th Congresses. This report addresses this issues in detail.
Date: April 16, 2001
Creator: Heykoop, Jerry & Segarra, Alejandro E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Foot and Mouth Disease: A Threat to U.S. Agriculture

Description: An outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) among livestock in the United Kingdom and parts of Europe that began in February 2001 has raised concerns about the United States’ ability to prevent the disease from spreading to this country and readiness to eradicate it should an outbreak occur. This report describes the characteristics of the FMD virus and disease, the current measures the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is taking to prevent its importation, and the authorities USDA has to a… more
Date: April 16, 2001
Creator: Segarra, Alejandro E. & Rawson, Jean M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agriculture: Previewing the 2002 Farm Bill

Description: This report discusses what a farm bill is and the process of renewing one every year. This report specifically covers the farm bill for 2002 and the issues that come with it. Moreover, the report highlights the importance of exports within the U.S. agricultural economy and how this is a key interest in the renewal of farm bills.
Date: April 9, 2001
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.; Chite, Ralph M.; Jones, Jean Y.; Rawson, Jean M.; Womach, Jasper; Zinn, Jeffrey A. et al.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Dairy Policy Issues

Description: Three major dairy policy issues captured the attention of the 106th Congress, and are expected to remain issues of concern to the 107th Congress-- federal financial assistance for dairy farmers; implementation by USDA of changes to federal farm milk pricing regulations; and regional debates over the market effects of dairy compacts.
Date: April 2, 2001
Creator: Chite, Ralph M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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