Herseth calls for drought aid

By Denise Ross, Journal Staff Writer | Saturday, September 11, 2004

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RAPID CITY — Lawmakers from regions struck by slow and silent natural disasters, such as drought, should take a stand when billions in disaster relief are rushed through for victims of headline-making disasters such as hurricanes, Rep. Stephanie Herseth, D-S.D., told members of South Dakota Stockgrowers Association on Friday.

"We are just as deserving of relief as those folks hit by hurricanes. Drought takes its toll in a wider geographic region — in many ways, a silent toll," Herseth told the Stockgrowers members at their annual convention here. "We have to demand the same type of support we're willing to provide those folks in Florida."

Herseth voted for a $2 billion disaster package for Florida hurricane victims, but she said members of Congress from drought-stricken states and those who suffered floods and summertime frost are organizing so they will have greater leverage during the next emergency package that might come through.

Herseth said getting a federal drought relief package is one in a series of the "challenges that lie ahead in ensuring a level playing field for those involved in family agriculture."

Trade agreements with other countries or regions need to be better deals for agriculture, she said. Herseth voted against the Australian Free Trade Agreement, or AFTA, and said she is likely to also vote against the Central American Free Trade Agreement primarily because of what she described as bad negotiating tactics by the U.S. trade representative.

"His underlying philosophy seems to be to negotiate and push through as many agreements as he can in the shortest period of time, without giving pause and without learning lessons," Herseth said.

Under AFTA, Herseth said, Australian businesses will have better access to the United States' 300 million consumers, and the United States can tap into Australia's 20 million people. At the same time, agriculture products constitute a third of Australia's exports to the United States, but ag products constitute 5 percent of U.S. exports to Australia.

"Then at the same time, they deny our producers the marketing mechanism of country-of-origin labeling," Herseth said.

The House Agriculture Committee was wrong when, in 2003, it postponed the implementation of COOL until 2006, she said. Under the 2002 farm bill, COOL was to go into effect this month.

"As Rep. Tom Osborne (R-Neb.) said, ‘This is going back on a deal the federal government made with ranchers throughout the Great Plains,'" Herseth said.

This year, another House committee passed legislation that would change COOL from a mandatory system required by law to a system meatpackers could voluntarily participate in.

Country-of-origin meat labeling is growing as a consumer issue, and, Herseth said, she has "high hopes" that in a floor vote, a mandatory system will be upheld.

Herseth won a special June 1 election against Republican Larry Diedrich. The two will face each other again in the Nov. 2 general election, and the winner will serve a full, two-year term.

The Stockgrowers convention concludes today.

Contact Denise Ross at 394-8438 or denise.ross@rapidcityjournal.com