In the News

 — The window of opportunity is open to "fix the cotton issue," U.S. Rep. Jodey Arrington said Monday.

Repeating that the top two items on his first-term to-do list were to work toward bringing the new generation bomber to Dyess Air Force Base in the 19th Congressional District and provide more opportunity to cotton farmers, Arrington said a 30-day window is open to push a supplemental appropriations bill that restores the safety net for West Texas cotton producers.

"It would be a game-changer for this region," he said. "It would mean billions of dollars" to the largest cotton-growing area of the largest cotton-growing state, he said.

Texas is one of 17 cotton-growing states but it's the "lifeblood and identity of West Texas," Arrington said.

After Congress passed stop-gap funding legislation just before Christmas, the U.S. House passed a bill that would provide $81 billion in disaster aid to states and territories affected in 2017 by hurricanes and wildfires. Texas was hard hit by Hurricane Harvey.

The bill was not expected to be taken up by the Senate until the new year.

The new year has arrived, and Arrington is working with senators and the media in hopes cotton is included.

This is not an unrelated add-on, he emphasized. Hurricane Harvey did sizable damage to Texas agriculture, with half of that — $100 million — affecting cotton in the southern areas of the state.

While the Title 1 safety net for cotton was removed in the 2014 Farm Bill — the only commodity affected — and work has begun on the next bill, the need is now, he said. Should cotton legislation pass now, it would go into effect this year instead of 2019.

That would be break-through news for cotton farmers, many of whom are young and don't own land or equipment. Burdened by debt and lack of insurance for lost crops, he said, they are getting out of agriculture. That is not good for the region, nor for the United States in the global market.

The new legislation would provide a greater safety net, is budget neutral and provides coverage for cotton as lint and seed.

"There is nothing bigger that I am working on," he said, other than securing the B-21 for Dyess. The legislation would be an economic plus for the state known for cotton and "the food and fiber independence of our country."

Besides U.S. Rep. Mike Conaway, who heads the House ag committee, Arrington has enlisted the support of senior Texas Sen. John Cornyn, the No. 2-ranking Republican in the Senate, and Sen. Ted Cruz. Gov. Greg Abbott also in involved because of the disaster aid aspect of the bill.

Arrington said the legislation would not require "additional taxpayer monies" because the costs are offset by cotton-related provisions already in place. The proposed disaster aid bill provides the funding mechanism.

However, if the window closes, cotton legislation may not stay budget neutral. Arrington's staff said the window stays open until month's end..

In the past, cotton has been viewed solely as lint — the raw product used to make clothing and other items.

For the first time, legislation refers to cotton as both lint and a seed, Arrington said. That makes sense because cotton oil and husks are valuable products.

Arrington said there is bipartisan support for hurricane and wildfire relief and there should be the same support for protecting U.S. food and fiber. In the 2017 omnibus appropriations bill, efforts to help cotton failed because two Democrats in the Senate, Patrick Leahy of Vermont and Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, countered with concerns about the dairy industry, pitting two commodities against each other.

The Texas congressman said the new legislation also helps those in dairy states.

Not only does taking the cotton issue out of the pending Farm Bill speed up assistance to farmers, it takes it out of what becomes a political football.

"Everyone wants something," he said of the Farm Bill debate.

He called the proposed bill nothing short of a win-win for the Texas cotton industry. Those affected by Harvey get relief, while farmers elsewhere in the state benefit.

"I think our leadership understands that," he said. "I look forward to the Senate carrying the water."

And so is Richard Gaona, president of Southern Rolling Plains Cotton Growers.

"Ensuring our cotton farmers have the necessary risk management tools is critical to not only their success, but the success of our region," Gaona said.

https://www.reporternews.com/story/news/local/big-country/2018/01/08/arrington-chance-now-fix-cotton-issue/1013826001/