Washington Insider -- Tuesday

By DTN's Washington Insider

Here's a quick monitor of Washington farm and trade policy issues from DTN's well-placed observer.

Senate May Vote on Energy Bill, but Hurdles Remain

Moving any controversial or even high profile legislation through Congress has proven a difficult lift over the past 17 months. Since January 2013, only 100 bills have made it to the president's desk and signed into law. So it is a moderate to big deal that the Senate this week could actually approve an energy bill.

The Senate reportedly could vote as early as today on an amendment deal that will allow the chamber to take up and pass the Shaheen-Portman energy efficiency bill, which has been stalled for nearly three years. The sponsors are Sens. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and Rob Portman, R-Ohio.

Over the weekend, Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., appeared on C-SPAN and said the fate of the bill is linked to whether Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., allows enough Republican amendments. Hoeven also predicted there would be a vote on approving the Keystone XL pipeline, although he said the measure still lacks the votes to overcome an expected filibuster.

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Senate Committee Searching for Long-Term Highway Funding Solution

A Senate panel this week could propose a long-term highway and transportation measure that would also rescue the Highway Trust Fund that currently is in danger of running short of cash to meet highway building and repair project obligations this summer. However, it is expected that the Senate plan is unlikely to match the four-year, $302 billion proposal unveiled last week by U.S. Department of Transportation.

Three Senate authorizing committees will be required to contribute to the Trust Fund, compared with just one in the House. And, both chambers' tax writers have to provide revenue. The Senate plan would fund highway, bridge and transit programs at current levels plus inflation. Many expect Congress to provide a short-term transfer of money from general revenue to shore up the trust fund this summer, thus giving lawmakers still more time to write a long-term bill.

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Washington Insider: What Organic Really Means

USDA offers fee-for-services programs for producers in several areas, for example, certifying how livestock were produced and, importantly, compliance with organic production rules. That program was established by law almost 25 years ago and has grown rapidly — but, also has been steeped in controversy throughout much of its life.

The 1990 law established basic organic production standards for the label and set up a 15-member volunteer citizen advisory panel. This group makes recommendations to the USDA about program operations, but one of its most contentious duties is determining which non-organic substances should be allowed under the organic seal.

The implicit contradiction in this issue led sponsors of the basic legislation to establish a complex review process before synthetic products could go on a "national list" for use in organic products. Recently, the operation of that process has been in the spotlight as USDA made changes, apparently making it easier for "temporarily approved" products to continue on the list.

There is no question that a two-thirds majority of the board (10 of the 15 members) is required to act on non-organic components approved for the organic program. However, there is a question of how that works, exactly.

Board members say a non-organic component can be added to the national list only if two-thirds of the board votes to allow it. And, they add, regardless of the two-thirds vote, the board's approval of the non-organic product expires automatically after five years.

USDA reportedly views things differently, and is now interpreting the rule to mean that once approved, non-organic products remain on the national list until voted off by a two-thirds majority of the board.

USDA's shift on the approval process for non-organic materials was formal and detailed in a Federal Register notice last September before going into effect in November. USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service and the National Organic Program manager said the change made the review and renewal process more transparent, and would give organic producers more time to find an alternative material or more time to reformulate and re-label their products if a substance is removed from the national list.

USDA also says the change streamlines the process, noting that changes were previously required to go through three extensive "rulemaking" procedures for each substance facing expiration – a process now narrowed to a single rulemaking.

Last week, the National Organic Standards Board met in Texas in a meeting that caused at least one demonstrator to be arrested over changes in the way organic standards are set.

The recent Texas debate is a significant embarrassment for the organic movement, given its clear focus on the importance of non-organics in the organic oversight system. And, it suggests, at least, the organization's focus on purity, even as it compromises with reality when that seems necessary.

It is interesting that USDA blundered into this fight, knowing as it does the powerful role ideology plays across the program. And, it will be very interesting to see how USDA reacts to the push to reestablish minority control on the essence of the organic movement, Washington Insider believes.

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