mr. chairman , i yield myself such time as i may consume . 
i thank the gentleman for his statement . 
i am pleased to join him for the first time in my capacity as ranking member of the agriculture appropriations subcommittee . 
it has been a pleasure working with the gentleman from texas and his staff to put together the 2006 agriculture appropriations bill and with the gentleman from california ( mr. lewis ) xz4002392 and the gentleman from wisconsin ( mr. obey ) xz4003000 as we worked in full committee to get here today . 
i , too , would like to say thank you to the staff of the subcommittee : to martha foley ; to my own personal staff , to karen wilcox , ashley turton and becky salay ; the majority office , martin delgado , maureen holohan , leslie barrack , tom o'brien , jami burgess . 
i really again say thank you for your expertise and for your patience . 
let me also compliment the chairman on doing the very best with limited resources in this bill . 
unfortunately , we know that the budget situation means that the funding allocation for this subcommittee was simply not sufficient to meet all the needs of rural america and our nation 's farmers . 
when i chose to sit on this subcommittee 9 years ago , i did so because i believed that the issues overseen by this subcommittee are core responsibilities of the federal government . 
this is the only subcommittee where farm policy , rural development and conservation , nutrition programs , food safety , drug regulations , and public health all come together . 
although some might be surprised to learn , i have nearly 400 farms in my district ranging from dairy farms to horticulture and aquaculture , to orchards and vegetable cultivation . 
in fact , the first experiment station in the united states still does cutting-edge research in new haven . 
another area that i have spent time on is determining how we can best secure our food supply , something in which every american has a stake . 
my duties as cochair and founder of the bipartisan food safety caucus have informed my understanding of the importance of the responsibilities of usda and fda alike , giving me the opportunity to visit slaughter plants and feed lots as well as fruit and vegetable farms across the country . 
i see food safety as a public health issue . 
i look forward to finding ways that can mutually benefit the health of our people , our farms , and our food supply . 
in addition , urban areas like new haven rely on feeding programs for women , infants and children , for schools , for seniors , and for some of the disabled living on the edge of poverty . 
yesterday was national hunger awareness day , and our subcommittee is certainly aware that the president 's budget predicted an increase in the use of food stamps in 2006 . 
unfortunately , this bill does not provide enough funding to maintain current participation in the commodity supplemental food program . 
at least 45 , 000 participants , the overwhelming majority of older americans , will have to be dropped from this program unless there are more funds provided . 
ensuring that these programs are funded is , in my opinion , among the very serious moral obligations of government . 
it is my belief that the bill before us today is more than a list of programs and funding levels . 
it is statement of values , of principles and priorities , a moral document so that when we discuss the bill and how it allocates $ 16.8 billion for usda , i believe we must think of it in those terms . 
we should remember that the farm programs and the international trade promotion and advocacy that help our farmers across the country and sell our products have profound implications on our nation 's overall economy and our quality of life , that research programs at usda are critical to our efforts to protect our agricultural plant and animal products , our environment , and our public health . 
unfortunately , in some of these area this bill falls short . 
i believe that the president 's budget failed to meet the needs of rural america , decimating rural development programs . 
this bill makes headway in reversing cuts made by the president . 
however , i am concerned that funding for water and waste grants , for example , remains below the level of last year 's house bill and well below the 2004 bill . 
rural america faces serious economic development challenges : affordable housing , clean drinking water , sewerage systems , access to remote educational and medical resources . 
i am afraid that this funding shortfall will lead to long-term deficiencies in rural infrastructure . 
of course , this bill covers the funding of one of the most important agencies in our entire government , the food and drug administration within the department of health and human services . 
fda oversees some of the most critical products that our citizens rely on every single day . 
the vast majority are processed and fresh foods , except for meat , poultry , and egg products ; our prescription and over-the-counter drugs ; medical devices ; our blood supply . 
this agency had many problems over the last year , from the recalls of bextra and vioxx to hearings in which its drug safety scientists have been at odds with the senior management of fda . 
it is troubling , very troubling , that the fda 's acting commissioner was not permitted to come before our subcommittee to testify this year , and that failure made it difficult for the committee to make informed decisions . 
i thank the chairman for accepting the amendment that i offered in subcommittee to withhold 5 percent of the funds from the food and drug administration 's central offices until the head of the agency testifies regarding their budget request . 
this will not affect food or drug safety . 
it will only affect fda 's administrative offices . 
but i am sure that it will serve to get the administration 's and the leadership of fda 's attention . 
on that same topic , i thank the chairman for working with me to include funding to double the annual funding for review and direct-to-consumer ads by fda , as well as another $ 5 million for drug safety at the fda . 
in 2001 , the drug industry spent $ 2.7 billion on direct-to-consumer advertising , but the fda office charged with ensuring that those ads are accurate was funded at less than $ 1 million , $ 884 , 000 to be precise . 
doubling that amount is a small start toward remedying the inequitable advantage , and the $ 5 million will be devoted to the most critical aspects of drug safety . 
i find it unfortunate the bill includes a 1-year limitation on implementation of the country of origin labeling for meat and meat products . 
country of origin labeling would give people the information they need to make an informed choice to protect the safety of their families . 
thirty-five other countries that we trade with , including canada , mexico , members of the european union , already have a country of origin labeling system in place . 
i believe it is a mistake to not move forward on implementing country of origin labeling . 
on international food aid , the subcommittee bill restores $ 222 million of funds under public law 480 that the administration sought to move to usaid , and i thank the chairman for preventing that move . 
however , we remain well below the funding level the past few years for that critical aid program . 
this law not only benefits those in dire need around the world , many of whom are starving to death , it benefits our farmers and our maritime shippers by utilizing our farm products and sources of transportation , and i hope that we can bring that funding level up before this bill becomes law . 
i am pleased that the president 's proposals to change formula funding for agriculture research institutions and to alter the funding stream for the food and safety inspection service through user fees were not included in the bill . 
i also appreciate the chairman 's working with the democratic members of the subcommittee to begin to fund last year 's specialty crop competitiveness act to enhance specialty crops such as fruits , vegetables , tree nuts , dried fruits , and nursery crops in this bill and for the farmers market promotion program , a function that can expand the farmer-consumer relationship in many areas of our country . 
the programs funded through this bill directly impact the everyday lives of every american , from public health and fda to rural development , infrastructure maintenance , environmental conservation and preservation , to nutrition assistance at home and abroad . 
failure to adequately invest in these programs will have serious long-term consequences for our nation . 
again , i have enjoyed working with the chairman and his staff , and i believe that we can take pride in the progress we have made in significantly improving the bill over the proposals that we did receive from the president . 
mr. chairman , i yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from california ( mr. farr ) xz4001290 . 
