NEWS from
Senator Patrick Leahy and Senator Jim Jeffords
_____________________

Leahy, Jeffords And Bipartisan Coalition
Launch Effort To Extend MILC Program

WASHINGTON (Thursday, Feb. 3) – Vermont Senators Patrick Leahy (D) and Jim Jeffords (I) and a bipartisan, multi-regional coalition of 27 senators Thursday introduced legislation to extend the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) Program, which brought more than $45 million in safety net payments to Vermont dairy farmers in the last three years to help them ride out depressed market prices.  The extension bill includes major enhancements that will increase the program’s benefits to family farmers nationwide.  Other leaders of the coalition include Senators Norm Coleman (R-Minn.), Herb Kohl (D-Wisc.) and Arlen Specter (R-Pa.). 

The MILC program, a key safety net for Vermont dairies during the historically low prices of 2002 and early 2003, is set to expire September 30.  The legislation introduced Thursday will extend the MILC program for two years, when it can be considered again at the time of the next Farm Bill, and it will double the current production cap from 2.4 million pounds to 4.8 million pounds. 

Last fall, President Bush for the first time endorsed extending the MILC program.  In January, at the Senate Agriculture Committee’s confirmation hearing for new Secretary of Agriculture Michael Johanns, Leahy put Johanns on the record in support of MILC’s extension, and Johanns pledged to work with Leahy in accomplishing it.    

"This program is so vital to our family farms and our entire state. The clock is ticking, and I will do all that I can to extend the MILC program for another two years. The MILC program was there for farmers when they needed it most, and I will work to ensure that it will be there again," Jeffords said. "Farming a dairy herd is a very tough job, but I have never met a farmer who didn't love it."

“No one works harder than a dairy farmer,” said Leahy.  “But it’s like walking a high wire, and the MILC program needs to be the safety net that’s there when prices plummet, beyond anything farmers can control.  This is a responsible, targeted program that has provided critical support to Vermont dairies when prices were low.  Getting this passed will not be easy, but with this strong coalition we’re off to a good start.”

The MILC program, which was modeled on the benefits of the Northeast Interstate Dairy Compact program, has provided more than $45 million in assistance to Vermont dairy farmers, and the expansion called for in the new bill would ensure full coverage of more than 90 percent of dairy operations under the program.