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WASHINGTON – Congressman Paul D. Tonko, the top Democrat on the Energy and Commerce Environment Subcommittee, was selected today to serve as a conferee when the House and Senate work to resolve differences between their versions of H.R. 2, the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, commonly known as the “Farm Bill.” 

“I am honored to have the opportunity to bring my voice to the table during negotiations of this essential bill,” said Tonko. “As we go to conference with the Senate, I vow to fight against any and every provision that would force kids to go hungry, undermine environmental protections, weaken clean energy opportunities in rural communities, and rip resources from the hands of our farmers. I look forward to advocating for the programs that matter most to our farmers and families across Upstate New York.”

The Farm Bill, typically passed every four years, is important multi-year legislation that reauthorizes a wide range of programs that are meant to protect nutrition, agriculture, and research. This legislation is typically bipartisan in nature and seeks to provide solutions and support primarily for nutrition and agricultural needs in both rural and urban communities. The most recent iteration considered by the House, H.R. 2, narrowly passed in June by a vote of 213-211, when 20 Republicans joined every House Democrat to oppose the measure. During debate on that legislation, Tonko outlined numerous concerns to provisions that would make devastating cuts to food assistance programs.

“The House GOP Farm Bill added insult to injury for farmers and working families, who just watched Republicans give a two trillion dollar tax gift to the wealthiest among us and are now coming for the food on the plates of some of America’s neediest kids,” Tonko added. “More than a million of America’s veterans depend on food assistance. Nearly two in three recipients are children, seniors or disabled Undermining their food security to give tax handouts to the wealthy is immoral and inexcusable. The people affected by this cruel bill are our neighbors, our community members, our family and friends. I am committed to standing for them as we go to conference with the Senate.”

Congressman Tonko has been a voice of moral reason on the House GOP Farm Bill for months, pointing out that 265,000 kids would lose access to food security through free or affordable school meals and some 1.9 million Americans would be kicked off food assistance by 2021. He has strongly opposed a mandate in the bill that forces SNAP recipients to confront former partners to recoup child support, arguing that this could put individuals with a history of being victimized by domestic abuse at a great risk. As a Co-Chair of the Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition, Congressman Tonko also led an effort to outline concerns with cuts to conservation programs as well as problematic public health and environmental rollbacks.

For a full list of Tonko’s arguments against the GOP Farm Bill, see his Twitter threads here and here.

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