Agriculture Emergency Act of 1980
Latest action. Referred to Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry.
Agricultural Emergency Act of 1980 - Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to raise the minimum loan and purchase levels which the Secretary of Agriculture is required to make available to producers, for the 1979 through 1981 crops, from $2.35 to $3.90 per bushel for wheat, from $2.00 to $2.50 per bushel for corn, and from 48 cents to 60 cents per pound for cotton. Sets a minimum loan and purchase level for the 1979 through 1981 crops of soybeans at $6.25 per bushel. Directs the Secretary to adjust such levels for such commodities at the beginning of each semiannual period after the beginning of the marketing year to reflect any estimated change in the parity index during such semiannual period. Prohibits the Commodity Credit Corporation, whenever the extended loan program for producer storage is in effect, from selling any of its stocks of wheat or feed grains at less than ten percent above the level at which the Secretary may call for the repayment of loans under specified conditions or at less than 20 percent above the then current level of price support for the commodity, whichever is higher, with specified exceptions. Amends the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 to require that the minimum quantities of agricultural commodities distributed for 1981 and each fiscal year thereafter under specified food relief programs be 1,600,000 metric tons, of which not less than 1,300,000 metric tons shall be distributed through the nonprofit voluntary agencies of the World Food Program. Amends the Food and Agriculture Act of 1977 to direct the Secretary to set price support loan levels for agricultural commodities at 90 percent of the parity price whenever the President or any other member of the executive branch suspends export sales of such commodities to any country or area of the world (no longer requiring that such suspensions be directed at countries or areas which the U.S. otherwise continues commercial trade or be based upon determinations of short supply). Directs the Secretary to: (1) announce and put into effect as soon as practicable specified cropland set-aside programs for wheat and for corn and feed grains; and (2) require that cropland acreage on the farm equal to not less than ten percent of the respective acreage of such commodities planted for harvest for the 1980 crop year be set aside and devoted to specified conservation uses. Authorizes the Secretary to adjust the 1980 cropland set-aside program operation as necessary because of the delay in initiating the program. Waives interest payment requirements on price support loans to producers of wheat, corn, grain sorghum, barley, rye, or oats for the 1979 crop for any period after January 10, 1980.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in Senate" stage on February 7, 1980. 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 February 7, 1980: Referred to Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- 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?
GEORGE MCGOVERN (D-SD) introduced it on February 7, 1980, and 4 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 3 Democrats, 1 Republican.
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 February 7, 1980, 17064 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 17064 days ago, on February 7, 1980.
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
- SenateIn committee, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers