June 11, 2013—Yesterday, the Senate passed the  Agriculture Reform, Food, and Jobs Act of 2013 (S. 954) by a vote of  66-27. The bill would reauthorize many of the nation’s food and agricultural programs while reducing funding for food stamps, farm subsidies, and environmental programs.

The bill is  opposed by conservative groups, like Freedomworks and the Heritage Foundation, for proposing too much spending, and by dairy farmers who oppose new milk supply limits.  Supporters of the bill include the crop insurance industry, which would see a  boost under the bill’s commodity provisions, and the biotechnology industry, which fought off an effort to add  GMO labeling language to the bill.

 

Data: MapLight analysis of campaign contributions to members of the Senate from interest groups supporting or opposing the bill according to MapLight from January 1, 2007 – December 31, 2012. Contributions data source: OpenSecrets.org

 

  • Senators voting ‘YES’ received  2.3 times more money from supporting interests than senators voting ‘NO.’
  • Senators voting ‘NO’ received  3.6 times more money from opposing interests than senators voting ‘YES.’
  • Martin Heinrich (D, NM) received  $359,106 from supporting interests, more than any other senator. He voted ‘YES.’
  • Jeff Flake (D, AZ) received  $1,385,370 from opposing interests, more than any other senator. He voted ‘NO.’

A link to this story can be found  here.

 

In previous weeks MapLight has taken a look at several provisions in the Farm Bill to examine how campaign contributions from special interest groups may have affected the final bill. Specifically we examined influence around the sugar program, GMO labeling, and crop insurance caps:

 

GMO Labeling Amendment Rejected Overwhelmingly in the Senate

 

  WILPF

May 24, 2013—Yesterday, by a vote of 27-71, the Senate defeated an amendment to the farm bill from Senator Bernie Sanders that sought to ensure that states can enforce their own laws requiring genetically modified foods to have special labels. 

How much money have members of the Senate received from companies that support the use of genetically engineered foods?

Read more

 

 

 

 

Extension of Sugar Program Remains in Farm Bill: Sugar Amendment Rejected

 

NatalieMaynor / Flickr &  imstock / Shutterstock

May 22, 2013—In an attempt to cut costs and limit waste, the farm bills advancing in the Senate and the House include many reforms to long-standing agricultural programs.

But so far the Sugar Program, criticized for boosting the price of American sugar by providing nonrecourse loans to growers and processors of sugarcane and sugar beets, has been left untouched.

How much money has the sugar cane and sugar beets industry given to members of Congress?

Read more

 

 

Senate Approves Caps on Crop Insurance for Wealthy Farmers

 

John Beales/ Flickr

June 6, 2013—In late May the Senate approved  an amendment to the farm bill that would reduce crop insurance subsidies for wealthy farmers. The amendment, sponsored by Senators Dick Durbin (D, IL) and Tom Coburn (R, OK) would reduce crop insurance payments by 15 percent to farmers with a gross annual income of $750,000 or more.

How much money have senators received from the crop production and basic processing industry?

Read more

 

About  MapLight:
MapLight is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization that reveals moneys influence on politics.

Media Contact:
Pamela Behrsin
c: 415-299-0898 | e: pamela@maplight.org | t: @imonlyabill