Lucas Issues Statement On Obama’s Budget Plan

Today, Chairman Frank Lucas released the following statement regarding President Obama’s fiscal year 2013 budget proposal.

"The President’s budget demonstrates that neither rural America nor fiscal discipline is a priority for this administration. Raising taxes on small businesses and ignoring the real drivers of trillion dollar deficits is a failure of leadership.

"The agriculture community remains committed to doing its part in deficit reduction. However, this proposal shows a lack of perspective and understanding in how agriculture can realistically contribute.

"For example, President Obama?s proposal to cut crop insurance threatens the integrity of the program itself. And, he ignores other areas for savings such as streamlining or eliminating duplicative programs in conservation, or closing loopholes in nutrition spending. Nutrition spending comprises 80 percent of the agriculture baseline and there is bipartisan support in Congress to save billions by eliminating loopholes, but not one penny is cut in the President?s budget.

"Not only does it fail to address our serious fiscal problems, but it undermines our investment in providing a stable food supply , " said Chairman Frank Lucas.