YOUR DUES DOLLARS AT WORK CCA CONTINUES TO LEAD IN OPPOSING MARKET MANDATES by CCA Vice President of Government Affairs Kirk Wilbur Earlier this year, Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) introduced S. 4030, the Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act of 2022 (often referred to as the “Grassley-Fischer bill,” as the legislation represents a compromise between Fischer’s S. 543 and Sen. Chuck Grassley’s (R-IA) S. 949, both introduced in March of 2021). CCA strongly opposes Grassley-Fischer primarily because the legislation establishes regional mandatory minimums for the negotiated trade of fed cattle, restricting the ability of producers to utilize alternative marketing arrangements (AMAs) which enable them to market their cattle at a premium. In line with CCA’s opposition to the Grassley-Fischer bill, CCA’s Price Discovery Subcommittee earlier this year drafted a resolution opposing any mandates on negotiated cash trade volumes for cattle, as well as any other policies which limit producers’ freedom to utilize AMAs. CCA’s leadership brought this resolution before the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) ahead of the 2022 Cattle Industry Convention held in Houston this past February. As a result of CCA’s advocacy, NCBA adopted a policy stating that the national association “opposes any mandate on cash trade volumes for cattle or any other legislative or regulatory policies that would limit the methods producers utilize to market cattle.” CCA and NCBA have good reason to be concerned by the specter of government mandates: according to a Texas A&M study, the short-term impact of trade mandates like those contained in the Grassley-Fischer bill would be “a $2.5 billion negative impact in the first year and a cumulative negative impact of $16 billion over 10 years…leveled mainly on cattle producers.” Analysts have also raised concerns that the bill would result in increased costs and decreased consumer choice in the retail and foodservice sectors. In early April, the Grassley-Fischer bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry. Ahead of an April hearing in that committee, CCA submitted a letter to Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Ranking Member John Boozman (R-AR) announcing our strong opposition to the bill. In the letter, CCA noted that “By imposing mandatory minimums in each region of the country, S. 4030 would be guaranteed to severely disrupt the way California cattle ranchers have chosen to market their cattle.” NCBA’s Livestock Marketing Council, the American National CattleWomen and 27 other state livestock associations also voiced their opposition to the Grassley-Fisher bill ahead of the hearing in the Senate. The Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act was heard before the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry on April 26. NCBA and Kansas Livestock Association member Shawn Tiffany testified at the hearing, noting that “Every producer wants fair market value for the 8 California Cattleman June 2021
animals we raise and produce and many of us achieve that true value through valuebased alternative marketing arrangements. Accordingly,” Tiffany continued, “I do not support a mandate of any kind. Regardless of how well intentioned the concept of helping producers obtain fair market value for their animals, the end result will be fewer marketing options for U.S. producers.” Subsequent to the Grassley-Fischer bill’s initial committee hearing, CCA staff met with representatives for both California Senators Dianne Feinstein and Alex Padilla to underscore our opposition to the mandatory minimums the bill would establish. While neither Feinstein nor Padilla sit on the Committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Nutrition, their opposition to the bill could help ensure that the legislation does not advance through the Committee to the Senate floor. As of press time, the Grassley-Fischer bill had not gone through committee markup – the process by which legislation is debated and amended in Committee. CCA will keep members apprised of any developments regarding the bill via this publication and CCA’s other communications. While CCA is staunchly opposed to the market-altering mandates enshrined in this bill, our organization is certainly supportive of several other mechanisms which can enhance price discovery and market transparency. In advocating our opposition to mandatory minimums before the Senate, CCA and other livestock associations have been careful to highlight various alternative policies which would improve ranchers’ ability to realize higher returns for the sale of cattle. In our lobbying efforts before the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Nutrition, for instance, CCA and other livestock associations have been clear that we support “less intrusive transparency measures,” such as the establishment of a cattle contract library pilot program, amending Livestock Mandatory Reporting (LMR) to ensure that more trades are reflected in daily and weekly cattle market reports and expanding current LMR regions to avoid circumstances where marketing data is excluded from LMR reporting due to confidentiality concerns within existing regions. In fact, NCBA President Don Schiefelbein reiterated the cattle industry’s support for these policies during a House Agriculture Committee hearing on April 27 – the day after the Grassley-Fischer bill was first heard in the other chamber of Congress. CCA – buoyed by our grassroots membership and the expertise of our Price Discovery Subcommittee – will continue to lead national efforts to enhance price discovery and transparency in the cattle markets and will continue to keep our membership informed as these efforts move forward.
