Burgess Owens Voting Record & Scorecard | Competitive Markets Action

The letters to Agriculture Committee Chairman G.T. Thompson (R-PA) and Ranking Member David Scott (D-GA) strongly urging the committee to oppose the inclusion of the Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression (EATS) or any similar language in the 2024 Farm bill. The EATS Act prevents state and local governments from tailoring agricultural regulations to the unique circumstances and needs facing their regions. Instead, the bill provides the federal government full control to set a universal standard across the entire country. Support is Competitive Markets Action and Organization for Competitive Markets Position as state and local governments are best equipped to set agriculture policy rather than the federal government through one size-fits-all mandates and central planning tactics. Furthermore, the EATS Act merely fuels China's takeover of U.S. agriculture by making it easier for Chinese corporations such as Smithfield foods to grow their control and ownership of U.S. farmlands.

The Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-WY) amendment #76 to the "Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2024" prevents the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service from implementing its proposed rule mandating electronic identification ear tags (EID) for cattle and bison. The EID rule will also require agriculture producers to comply with new data collection and reporting requirements. Support is the Competitive Markets Action and Organization for Competitive Markets Position as the EID mandate further grows the size and scope of the government surveillance state. Additionally, this increased interference in the marketplace provides special benefits to the meat packing industry at the financial expense of agriculture producers.

The Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-IN) amendment #76 to the "Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2024" implements reforms to commodity checkoff programs. Under these programs, producers of certain products, such as beef, dairy, or poultry, are forced to pay into a fund (ex. $2 for a cow) that is used for industry research or advertising campaigns. The amendment increases transparency on how the funds are utilized and ensures taxpayer funds are used by the boards of these programs. Support is Competitive Markets Action and Organization for Competitive Markets Position as, while government-mandated checkoff programs should be eliminated entirely, this bill serves as a step in the right direction to reducing corruption. It is the role of the private sector to voluntarily organize and fund product promotion for industry, not for big producers to utilize government to financially coerce small producers to fund their activities.