Weekly USMEF Audio Report: Congressional Support Strong for MAP, FMD Funding, but Budget Process Still in Early Stages...

June 22, 2009 - Despite being targeted for budget reductions by officials in the Obama Administration and some members of Congress, the Market Access Program (MAP) and Foreign Market Development (FMD) program have received strong early support in the Congressional budget process. The House Appropriations Committee has marked up and approved the FY 2010 Agriculture Appropriations bill, funding MAP at $200 million and FMD at $34.5 million – the full levels authorized in the 2008 Farm Bill. The full House of Representatives is expected to consider the bill after the Fourth of July recess, which is also when the Senate is expected to take up these issues at the committee level.

In this weekly audio report, Thad Lively, U.S. Meat Export Federation senior vice president for policy, planning and research says the MAP and FMD programs have strong support in Congress because of the impressive results they have helped produce for a wide range of U.S. agricultural exports. But while these programs have been treated very favorably so far in the budget process, Lively cautions that floor amendments may still target them for funding reductions.

To fortify support in Congress, USMEF is part of a coalition that has provided legislators with information outlining the benefits agricultural exports deliver for the U.S. economy. The coalition notes that since MAP’s creation in 1985, U.S. agricultural exports have increased by nearly 300 percent, and today more than 1.2 million Americans have jobs that depend on these exports. An independent study commissioned by USDA prior to the 2008 Farm Bill debate showed that farm net cash income increased considerably as a result of foreign market development activities.

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The U.S. Meat Export Federation (www.USMEF.org) is the trade association responsible for developing international markets for the U.S. red meat industry and is funded by USDA, exporting companies, and the beef, pork, corn and soybean checkoff programs.