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Smart Practices. Sustainable Solutions. Irrigation Association CAIA 2017 Elizabeth R. McCartney September 6, 2017
Smart Practices.Sustainable Solutions.
Irrigation AssociationCAIA 2017
Elizabeth R. McCartneySeptember 6, 2017
Irrigation Association
The Irrigation Association is the leading membership organization for water management companies and
professionals in agriculture, landscape and golf.
VISION:To be the recognized authority on irrigation
MISSION:To promote efficient irrigation
CORE STRATEGIC INITIATIVES
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENTADVOCACY
Government Affairs Public Affairs Standards &
CodesEducation &
TrainingWorkforce
Development
CORE SUPPORT INITIATIVES
Membership Irrigation Show
2016 STRATEGIC PLANApproved December 2016
Certification
Infrastructure
ORGANIZATIONAL COMPETENCY
Congressional CalendarJuly Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
• G20 summit
• Immigration partial travel ban in effect
• Congress on Summer recess
• NAFTA renegotiations begin
• Tax reform legislation
• FAA authorization expires
• US will hit debt limit by September 29
• End of Fiscal Year 2017
• Special elections 2017
Health care reform• With the failure of repeal and replace in the
Senate, health care reform has been put on the back burner as the focus shifts to tax reform
Reductions in federal spending• Trump and the House Budget Committee claim
their proposals would lead to a balanced budget. The CBO has disagreed on both accounts
Tax reform and simplification• It is unclear how Trump’s plan will cut taxes
while simultaneously reducing the federal deficit• Trump still wants to see the corporate tax rate
reduced to 15%, a figure that will be difficult, if not impossible, to achieve
Welfare reform• Trump and the House Budget Committee have
proposed significant cuts to welfare• The Tuesday Group claims the cuts are too
drastic, and the Freedom Caucus argues the cuts are too small
Immigration reform• Trump has threatened a shutdown in October if
Democrats refuse to fund the border wall. It is unlikely Democrats will budge on this issue
Strengthen national defense• Both the House Budget Committee and the
White House are advocating for increases to defense spending
■ Completed ■ In progress ■ Stalled ■ No action
Appropriations
September 5, 2017 | Justin Brown
House releases the text of seven appropriations bills:
The House Appropriations Committee begins the lengthy appropriations process by releasing the text of seven bills: Agriculture, Commerce/Justice/Science, Defense, Energy/Water, Financial Services, Legislative Branch and MilCon-VA; all of the bills are now being considered in their respective appropriations subcommittees
May 2017 June 2017
President’s FY18 budget request:
In his first budget request as president, Donald Trump asked for $576 billion for non-defense discretionary programs and $574.5 billion for defense, along with $76.0 billion for Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding
July 2017:House Appropriations Committee passes all appropriations bills: The House Appropriations Committee completed its task of drafting and approving all appropriations bills
July 2017:Senate Appropriations Committee passes six appropriations bills: The full committee approved the following bills during the month of July: Agriculture, Commerce/Justice/Science, Energy/Water, Legislative Branch, MilCon-VA and Transportation/HUD
July 2017:House passes four approps. bills through the “Department of Defense Appropriations Act”: The legislation (H.R. 3219) was passed on a vote of 235-192 and provides funding for four of the 12 annual approps. bills: Defense, MilCon-VA, Energy & Water, and Legislative Branch
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Legislative timeline
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The 2018 Farm Bill
September 5, 2017 | Daniel Stublen
Hearing: “Setting the Stage for the Next Farm Bill”
The House Committee on Agriculture, chaired by Rep. Mike Conaway (R-TX11), listened to testimony by UDSA’s chief economist and academics
Senate Field Hearings
The Senate Ag Committee held hearings in Chairman Roberts’ home state of Kansas and Ranking Member Stabenow’s home state of Michigan
2014 February 2017
Legislative timeline
Farm Bill passes two years late:
Contention around cutting funds for SNAP and removing direct payments to farmers, among other issues, delayed the legislation
Recent key developments on the 2018 Farm Bill and potential future actions
August 29, 2017:GAO publishes report on crop insurance: Their analysis said that the government could save up to $464 million a year by reducing the amount paid by the federal government as subsidies to private crop insurance companies
July 2017:Agriculture Secretary Perdue tours farm states: Sonny Perdue traveled around the Midwest in an RV to meet with farmers and agriculture organizations about the upcoming Farm Bill negotiations. He plans to visit 25 states before Labor Day and has promised that USDA will be “intimately” involved in negotiations
August 20, 2017:First round of NAFTA negotiations finish: USTR Lighthizer recognized in his opening remarks that “for many farmers and ranchers, Canada and Mexico are their largest export markets,” but also lamented the “huge trade deficits, the lost manufacturing jobs” by the current trade agreement
Feb/May 2017
Hearings: “The Next Farm Bill”
House Ag Subcommittees held hearings on conservation policy, rural development and energy programs, specialty crops, livestock and dairy issues, commodity markets, SNAP and the Farm Credit System
Feb-April 2017
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CONGRESSIONAL PRODUCTIVITY
Sources: Library of Congress; “Resumé of Congressional activity,” U.S. Senate, 2013; “Statistics and historical comparison,” GovTrack.us, 2017.
Number of public bills and joint resolutions enacted into law100th – 115th Congresses (1987-2017)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
284 laws: The 112th
Congress was the least productive on record
329 laws: The 114th
Congress did not address immigration, stagnant wages, a tax overhaul, Garland’s Supreme Court nomination or criminal justice reform
337 laws: The 104th
Congress reached a then-low due to partisan division following the 1995 government shutdown
55 laws: as of August 29, 2017
Looking Ahead
IA Farm Bill Task ForceChair Stephen Smith, PhD, FASIC, CAIS,
CLIA, PrincipalWade Water, LLC
Members Dan Keppen, Executive DirectorFamily Farm Alliance
Paul McFadden, Senior Sales Manager, US & Canada Toro Micro-Irrigation
Richard Panowicz, CID, Vice President N.A. Sales Valley Irrigation
Jay Robbins, PE, TSP, CAIS, CID, President Irrigation-Mart
Julie Bushell, Director of Sales and Marketing Paige Electric Company, LP, Ag Cable Division
Jim Hunt, Market Segment Leader, Netafim
James Burks, President, Senninger
CoalitionsWACC
CAPA
IA Member Engagement
Grassroots
Other Activities
The principles for efficient agricultural irrigation include:
1. Use qualified professionals to plan and help manage irrigation systems.
2. Know and protect the water supply and the environment.
3. Identify the soil type and its soil water characteristics to manage the water supply.
4. Understand crop water needs to know when and how much water should be applied.
5. Select appropriate irrigation methods that will efficiently deliver water to the crop.
6. Plan and implement irrigation scheduling to use water efficiently.
7. Adopt and apply innovative technology to improve water management.
8. Maintain accurate records to facilitate better decisions on crop inputs.
9. Anticipate water shortages and have planned strategies to respond.
2017 Irrigation Show
Water SummitFriday, Nov. 10, 2017
Orange County Convention CenterOrlando, Florida
Nov. 6 – 10, 2017
