Food Security Fund Act of 1979
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Food Security Fund Act of 1979 - Declares that it is the policy of the United States: (1) that adequate financial resources should be placed at the President's disposal to meet, within the framework of a market economy, the urgent humanitarian needs for wheat in foreign nations, and to comply with international obligations to provide such assistance; and (2) that governmental acquisition and perpetual maintenance of large additional stocks of a wheat reserve solely to meet such needs would depress producer prices, destroy production incentives, disrupt markets, impair the capacity of the United States to meet such needs, and require the expenditure of large sums of public moneys for the storage and handling of such wheat. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to purchase wheat from American producers or in the open market in the United States, in such manner as will not unduly disrupt the market. Directs the Secretary to formulate and administer a program whereby he may purchase, on a voluntary basis, wheat held in the producer storage program, and donate the wheat so acquired to provide urgent humanitarian relief to any foreign country suffering a major disaster, to assist developing countries, and to fulfill any lawful international obligation. Directs the Secretary to use the authorities and not to exceed $500,000,000 of the funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation to carry out the provisions of this Act. Authorizes reimbursement of the Corporation for funds so expended, on the basis of actual costs incurred.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on July 10, 1979. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on July 10, 1979: Referred to House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
KEITH SEBELIUS (R-KS) introduced it on July 10, 1979, and 2 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 2 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on July 10, 1979, 17229 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 17229 days ago, on July 10, 1979.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers