Nothin’ shakin’ on shutdown street

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Sep 25, 2023 View in browser   By Garrett Downs Presented by With help from Marcia Brown and Meredith Lee Hill QUICK FIX — Congress is careening toward a government shutdown that’s only five days away.  A shutdown could do a lot of damage to food programs. — Meanwhile, the House is trying to revive the dead Agriculture-FDA appropriations bill with new cuts and amendments. The yearly spending packages will do nothing to avert a shutdown.  — FIRST IN MA: Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) have a new bill to regulate solar energy production on agricultural land. IT’S MONDAY, Sept. 25. Welcome to Morning Ag. I’m your host, Garrett Downs. Send tips to gdowns@politico.com and follow us at @Morning_Ag.   A message from American Beverage Association: America’s leading beverage companies – The Coca-Cola Company, Keurig Dr Pepper and PepsiCo – are bringing consumers more choices with less sugar. From sparkling, flavored and bottled waters to zero sugar sodas, sports drinks, juices and teas, consumers have more options than ever. In fact, nearly 60% of beverages sold today have zero sugar. Americans are looking for more choices to support their efforts to find balance, and America’s beverage companies are delivering. Explore choices at BalanceUS.org.   Want to receive this newsletter every weekday? Subscribe to POLITICO Pro. You’ll also receive daily policy news and other intelligence you need to act on the day’s biggest stories. Driving the day According to our Congress team, the only escape route for Speaker Kevin McCarthy left is to work with Democrats on a stopgap continuing resolution. | Francis Chung/POLITICO HERE COMES THE SHUTDOWN: The U.S. is days away from a government shutdown, and the House has no plausible plans yet to avert it. Instead, the lower chamber is plowing ahead with votes on just a handful of yearly spending bills that will do nothing to avert a shutdown and will be rejected by the Democrat-controlled Senate. Both chambers of Congress would need to pass all 12 appropriations bills by Sept. 30 to fully fund the government, something neither chamber is close to doing with only days remaining. More on that below. The only escape route left: According to our Congress team, the only escape route for Speaker Kevin McCarthy left is to work with Democrats on a stopgap continuing resolution. So far the speaker has not yet made an entreaty with Democrats, and a group of conservative hardliners have threatened a motion to vacate him from the speakership if he does. The House is being held up by a contingent of hard-right Republicans who have vowed to never vote for a CR. What would a shutdown do?: The U.S. has been through shutdowns before, but they can do damage to food programs — especially if prolonged. The FDA oversees approximately 80 percent of the U.S. food supply and a government shutdown could put its safety work in jeopardy, former FDA Deputy Commissioner Frank Yiannas warned. “Essential government services” only allowed the FDA to respond to foodborne outbreaks during the 2018-19 shutdown, he said, but prevented the agency from conducting proactive inspections. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program would remain in operation during a shutdown, but it’s unclear what might happen if it drags out. During the last shutdown, the government nearly ran out of funds for SNAP, which would’ve yanked benefits from 40 million people. And according to USDA, nearly 7 million pregnant and postpartum recipients of supplemental food aid and their children could lose access to the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children. “USDA Food and Nutrition Service likely does not have sufficient funding to support normal WIC operations beyond a few days into a shutdown,” an agency spokesperson said. Meanwhile, the Senate this week will likely consider a CR of its own, attempting to bypass the chaos in the House. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Thursday filed cloture on a bill to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration, which he noted could serve as a vehicle for the upper chamber’s own CR. APPROPRIATIONS SEASON Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) chairs the House Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration Appropriations Subcommittee. | Francis Chung/POLITICO AG-FDA IS BACK: The House may consider an updated version of the chamber’s Ag-FDA bill this week after the Rules Committee approved it over the weekend. The bill, presumed dead after being punted by the House GOP before the August recess, is one of a handful of bills Rules set up for floor time this week. However, the bills would do nothing to avert the impending shutdown. What’s new: In short, a lot of cuts on top of the large cuts already made by the original bill. Republicans on the committee adopted a manager’s amendment from House Appropriations Ag-FDA Subcommittee Chair Andy Harris (R-Md.) that would cut all spending in the original bill by 14.15 percent, except WIC. The Food for Peace program, which provides international food aid, would see a massive $1.2 billion cut. The cuts are being made to appease conservative GOP members who insisted on deeper slashes to spending. But the bill has no path in the Senate, which has its own Ag-FDA bill largely in line with spending numbers agreed to in the debt limit deal. A big omission: An amendment to strip the bill of a provision banning mail-order of the abortion pill mifepristone was left out of the rule. The amendment, which could still be brought up on the floor, is integral to gaining the support of moderate Republicans who fiercely oppose the anti-abortion measure. A full list of amendments is here.   A message from American Beverage Association:   BILL INTRODUCTIONS FIRST IN MA, SOLAR FARM BILL: A new bill from Baldwin and Grassley would seek to create a framework for solar energy arrays on farmland. Farmland, typically vast and flat with a lot of sunlight, is great land for generating solar power. Most solar arrays being set up in the U.S. are on farmland, but according to the senators, there is no current federal strategy for the land beneath the solar panels. What the bill would do: It would require USDA to prioritize assistance to large-scale renewable energy projects through the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) that already have soil, water, vegetation and conservation plans in place. The bill would also authorize the National Resources Conservation Service to develop best practices for the protection of both soil health and productivity for when solar is placed on farmland. Agrivoltaics angle: The bill would also set a definition for agrivoltaics — the co-location of crop production, livestock grazing and pollinator habitat with solar energy infrastructure. The concept is popular among sustainable agriculture advocates, as it holds the potential to create a dual revenue stream for farmers on the same plot of land and create renewable energy. It would also authorize USDA to provide technical assistance to farmers growing crops and grazing in tandem with solar panels. Row Crops – USDA is extending the deadline for farmers to apply for the Discrimination Financial Assistance Program to Jan. 13, 2024 from Oct. 31. The program, the funding for which comes from Section 22007 of the Inflation Reduction Act, provides assistance to farmers and ranchers who have experienced discrimination in USDA’s lending programs. — Can farmers in Iowa make billions from cutting carbon emissions? The Des Moines Register asks the question. — The Dallas Morning News looks into what is causing indoor farms to fail. THAT’S ALL FOR MA! Drop us a line: gdowns@politico.com, meredithlee@politico.com, marciabrown@politico.com, mmartinez@politico.com, abehsudi@politico.com and ecadei@politico.com.   A message from American Beverage Association: Families are looking for more choices to support their efforts to find balance, and today nearly 60% of beverages sold have zero sugar. America’s beverage companies are intentionally offering more choices with less sugar or no sugar at all, and our actions are making a real difference. Our commitment to helping our consumers find balance includes: Putting clear calorie labels on every bottle, can and pack.  Reminding consumers to think about balance with signs on coolers and displays in store.  Innovating products to offer more choices with less sugar or no sugar at all.  Working with local organizations across the country to build awareness of the many choices available – and make zero sugar beverages more available in communities where it’s needed most.  Learn more at BalanceUS.org     Follow us on Twitter Emily Cadei @emilycadei Adam Beshudi @ABehsudi Meredith Lee @meredithllee Garrett Downs @_garrettdowns Marcia Brown @Marcia_Brown9   Follow us

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