Does not matter: Billions for climate, forestry at stake in the House

Sep 27, 2021

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With help from Helena Bottemiller Evich and Hannah Farrow

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Quick Fix

— Billions for climate mitigation and forestry work are at stake as the House tackles two major pieces of legislation this week: a bipartisan infrastructure package, and the far more contentious reconciliation package.

— A new report out today from FoodCorps looks into the lessons learned about school meals during the pandemic and what that means for meals moving forward.

— The Agriculture Department announced the launch of its long-awaited equity commission on Friday and is seeking nominations.

HAPPY MONDAY, SEPT. 27! Welcome to Morning Ag, where your host is sad yet excited to announce that MA's Ryan McCrimmon is moving on from POLITICO's Ag team. But never fear! He is secretly still here working his magic editing MA most weeknights in his new role as night editor. Have tips or ideas for what you'd like to see us do more (or less) of in Morning Agriculture? Send tips to xbustillo@politico.com and @ximena_bustillo, and follow us @Morning_Ag.

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DRIVING THE WEEK

GET READY FOR ANOTHER LONG WEEK: The House Budget Committee advanced a $3.5 trillion reconciliation spending bill over the weekend, bringing billions in climate research, forest management and rural development one step closer to a floor vote, report POLITICO's Jennifer Scholtes and Caitlin Emma . And the chamber is expected to begin debate on the bipartisan infrastructure package today with a final vote later this week, just in time for the expiration of the surface transportation authorization.

Full steam ahead: In a letter to her caucus on Saturday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi touted the Budget Committee markup, while noting that the package will change before she brings it to a floor vote as "negotiations continue with the Senate."

"The next few days will be a time of intensity," the speaker wrote.

What we know about the missing ag pieces: House Ag Democrats are still working to include conservation and debt relief provisions that did not make it into the text in time for the committee markup. A $28 billion conservation provision is expected to include billions in funding for cover crop production, voluntary conservation programs and the Natural Resources Conservation Service, according to documents obtained by POLITICO last week.

But the debt relief provisions have not begun circulating Capitol Hill despite Senate Ag Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) telling reporters that they are done and written. Stabenow on Friday said the provisions are expected to help small and socially disadvantaged farmers while addressing concerns the courts have raised over the last round of debt relief for farmers of color passed in March.

"We've been working closely with Justice Department, and USDA, and how we revise what we did meets the test of the courts in a way that still maintains the goals of what we want to do around equity and broadening that out to small farmers but still being focused on impoverished areas and parts of the country that are most in need," Stabenow said during a Farm Aid town hall.

What's next: The next stop for the reconciliation package is the Rules Committee, where the missing agriculture provisions could be added before the measure heads to the floor for a vote.

We didn't forget about BIF: Showing movement on the social spending package is especially important now, since Pelosi faces pressure to call up the separate infrastructure package that top Democrats have tried to advance in tandem with the social spending plan.

In a letter to Democratic colleagues, Pelosi announced the start of debate on the infrastructure package today with a vote scheduled for Thursday.

What's in that for ag? The bipartisan infrastructure package would spend $550 billion on broadband expansion, climate action, water infrastructure and roads, bridges and highways. That includes $2 billion for the Agriculture Department, including the ReConnect Program, to expand broadband in rural areas. And billions for carbon removal projects, forest management, tree planting and the Emergency Watershed Restoration Program.

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SCHOOL MEALS ARE EXPANDING WITH COVID, BUT WHAT ABOUT QUALITY? The Covid-19 crisis has shined a big spotlight on the role school meals play in feeding millions of kids and a new report out today from FoodCorps dives into what we've learned so far. One big takeaway, based on interviews with dozens of school leaders, is that the quality of meals suffered as schools have pivoted to grab and go and more socially-distant set ups.

From the front lines: "We want to get away from individually-wrapped foods so badly," reported one nutrition director cited in the paper. "We were doing so much scratch cooking like dressings, etc. And we've dropped all of that."

"We were all lamenting that lunch kind of sucks right now; it's not joyful," said another nutrition director. "It's not salads and spice bars and build-your own bars, it's all back to pre-package."

On quality: Of course, quality is a subjective term. Many of the school leaders interviewed for the report said they wanted to serve more choices, more "culturally affirming foods" and take in way more community feedback about what families wanted to see on the menu. Some wanted to see more fresh food, others more locally-procured.

The big picture: "The pandemic has clarified the many strengths and assets of school nutrition programs nationwide, while also revealing structural challenges school foodservice departments have been facing since long before COVID-19," the report says. "In many ways, our country has woefully underinvested in our national school meal programs."

While we're here: Recall that the reconciliation package working its way through Congress includes $634 million for grants that support healthy eating, like nutrition education and school gardens as well as $500 million for school kitchen upgrades. That bill also extends Summer EBT through fiscal year 2029 and greatly expands what's known as the Community Eligibility Provision, or CEP, which makes school meals universally free in higher need districts.

USDA LAUNCHES LONG-WAITED EQUITY COMMISSION: The Agriculture Department announced Friday that it will create an Equity Commission to address historical wrongs for underserved farmers, ranchers and forest landowners, POLITICO's Hannah Farrow reports.

Long time coming: The creation of the commission is several months behind schedule. The goal was to have the commission up and running by mid to late summer, according to senior adviser for racial equity at the USDA Dewayne Goldmon, who spoke to reporters in April.

Goals for the commission: The commission is aimed at finding barriers to entry for historically underserved communities in accessing USDA programs and services, such as loans and grants in the Farm Service Agency. With input on the newly formed Subcommittee on Agriculture, the equity commission will advise Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack by identifying programs and practices that "contribute to barriers to inclusion or access, systemic discrimination, or exacerbate or perpetuate racial, economic, health and social disparities," according to the department.

What's next: USDA is seeking 15 nominations each for the Equity Commission and the Subcommittee on Agriculture, which will report to the main commission with agriculture-specific concerns. Within a year of forming, the commission will create an interim report and provide recommendations, and a final report will be made within two years.

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Row Crops

— The United Kingdom will grant temporary visas for the trucking and food industry to help alleviate supply chain crunches. POLITICO Europe's Lili Bayer reports.

— The surge of federal aid during the pandemic is leading to lasting positive economic results for people, a reality lawmakers need to reckon with as they evaluate the government's role. POLITICO's Megan Cassella has the story.

— Iowa's Sierra Club Chapter filed a lawsuit against the state's Natural resources Department accusing it of using bad information to approve a large-scale feeding operation. Iowa Public Radio has more.

— Marijuana dispensaries and cultivation facilities are attracting new labor, in part because retail and restaurant workers are seeking new job opportunities. The Washington Post has the report.

— The number of food poisoning cases dropped in 2020 likely in part due to added Covid-19 safety measures, according to The Counter.

THAT'S ALL FOR MA! Drop us a line: xbustillo@politico.com; hbottemiller@politico.com; gmott@politico.com and pjoshi@politico.com.

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