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AFBF seeks revision to cattle market transparency bill

The American Farm Bureau Federation is seeking revisions to the compromise bill addressing competition in cattle markets.

Scott Bennett, Director of Congressional relations for AFBF says their membership agreed robust price discovery is important to the cattle industry.   “Having healthy amounts of price discovery will yield a healthier market, he says.  “But as far as having a government-mandated negotiated trade, they did speak and tell us that government-mandated negotiated trade is not of interest.”

He tells Brownfield their membership is mostly in favor of the Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act sponsored by Senators Deb Fischer of Nebraska and Chuck Grassley of Iowa.  “The contract library, the components around confidentiality, and then that of creating parity across the Packers and Stockyards Act and civil fines.”

AUDIO: Scott Bennett, American Farm Bureau Federation

University of Missouri Livestock economist Scott Brown says Farm Bureau’s announcement last week could make a more difficult path for the proposed legislation.   “This is not a simple issue to talk through in terms of are we to a point where there isn’t enough cash trade occurring at times,” he asks.  “I think that’s a very difficult question to answer, and it makes it very difficult to know how to provide a legislative fix.”

Ranking member of the US Senate Ag Committee John Boozman told Brownfield last month he’d like to see more economic analysis of the proposed legislation and have more fact-finding hearings on it before it advances.