Legislative Issues & Policies - Federal Emergency Disaster Relief for Horses

Introduction

The horse industry is hurt by floods, droughts, ice storms, fires and hurricanes just like other livestock industries. But, until just two years ago, very few horse owners were eligible for the various forms of federal emergency assistance available to other livestock producers. While producers of horses kept for the production of food or fiber on the owner’s farm have been eligible for federal emergency assistance, producers of other horses were not.

This is unfair. If a breeding farm or ranch loses horses because of a natural disaster, it has lost its crop and production capability and has nothing to sell or produce additional foals. When grazing lands are lost because of flood or drought and feed must be purchased for horses, an owner might have to sell horses at distressed prices because he could no longer afford to provide for them. While other livestock producers are eligible for low-interest emergency loans following a disaster, horse breeders are not. Under all these circumstances, federal emergency funds would assist horse owners in keeping their horses and operations viable.

2005 Amendments

In 2005, Senators Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Jim Bunning (R-KY) and Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) were able to pass legislation making horses eligible for various federal emergency assistance programs under the limits enjoyed by other livestock and crop producers. Importantly, this law repealed the language in the outdated Agricultural Act of 1949 limiting emergency funds to horses “used for food or fiber or the production of food of food or fiber.” This limitation had been a major stumbling block to making horses eligible for federal assistance.

But these changes in the law did not provide complete parity for the horse industry since horse breeders may not yet be eligible for federal emergency loans. Therefore, additional clarifications must still be passed for emergency loans.

The horse industry has been working to ensure that horses are eligible for the same federal assistance that other livestock is eligible for once a disaster is declared and funds appropriated.

2007 Farm Bill

The various federal programs that provide relief to livestock and crop producers following a disaster are a hodge-podge of programs that are confusing and require specific appropriations. One of the expressed goals of Congress in the 2007 Farm Bill is to pursue permanent agricultural disaster authority. This is an opportunity for the horse industry to maintain its parity with other livestock industries with respect to federal disaster assistance.

The industry has worked to have limited language included in the Farm Bill to clarify that horse owners involved in production agriculture are eligible for federal assistance, just like other livestock producers. Commercial production agriculture should include horse owners involved in breeding, along with their stallions, mares, and foals, yearlings and horses being prepared for sale or use. It would not include owners of horses being used for racing, showing, recreation or pleasure. This comports with the purpose of the federal protections for other livestock producers since the USDA’s overall emergency programs are limited to those involved in production agriculture. They are not available to anyone who simply owns, uses, shows, or exhibits livestock, whether the animal be a cow, pig, or horse.

Congressional Action

House Farm Bill. The House Agriculture Committee reported out its version of the 2007 Farm Bill with a provision that provided for a permanent disaster program. This provision included horses maintained for commercial use as part of a farming or ranching operation within the definition of eligible livestock. Unfortunately, the Agriculture Committee was not able to secure funding for this permanent program and it was not included in the final House farm bill, which passed the House on July 27, 2007.

Senate Farm Bill. On December 14, 2007, the Senate passed its version of the Farm Bill on a vote of 79 to 14. The $286 billion bill includes two provisions that would make horse owners involved in production agriculture eligible for additional federal programs that are administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in the aftermath of a natural disaster. Senators McConnell and Bunning were critical to the inclusion of horses in these two provisions.

The first provision would make horse breeders eligible for federal emergency loans for the first time by including “equine farmers and ranchers” within the class of eligible producers.

The second provision institutes a permanent disaster relief fund that would provide payments to farmers and ranchers who suffer losses in areas that are declared disaster areas by USDA. This provision specifically includes “horses” within the definition of livestock eligible for the program.

Conference. The House bill does not include the provisions described above applicable to horse owners and is quite different from the Senate Farm Bill in many other respects. A conference between House and Senate members will be necessary to work out these differences in the second session of this Congress, which begins in January. The bill that results from that conference will have to be passed by both the House and Senate and then signed by the President.

President Bush has threatened to veto both versions of the Farm Bill as too expensive.

AHC Position

The AHC has been working for some time on achieving parity for horse breeders with other livestock producers. The AHC supports the disaster relief provisions in the Senate version of the farm bill.