madam chairman , i yield myself the remaining 2 1/2 minutes to close . 
madam chairman , as we conclude the general debate , i wanted to reiterate that it has been a pleasure to work with the gentleman from texas ( chairman bonilla ) on the bill . 
given limited resources , i think we have tried to do a good job to meet the needs of rural america , our nation 's farmers , and other accounts funded in the bill . 
as we begin to move through the amendment process , i look forward to trying to address several areas in the bill that i believe could use some improvement . 
i mentioned earlier the commodity supplemental food program . 
a majority of older americans , nearly 45 , 000 participants , will have to be dropped from this vital program unless more funds are provided . 
also of concern to me is the 1-year limitation on implementation of country of origin labeling for meat and meat products . 
consumers in this country need the information to make informed decisions for their safety and the safety of their families , and i hope that the house will reconsider the country of origin labeling provision in this bill . 
overall , i think that the committee can feel good about the work that it has done on this legislation thus far . 
i am hoping that we can look at an amendment process where we can improve the bill even more in just a few critical areas . 
i would hope that with regard to the food and drug administration that , in fact , we will be able to provide them with the authorities that i think the nation would believe that they desperately need , and that is to be able to do post-marketing studies on drug products on the market and also to change labels that would need changing in order to protect the citizenry of this country . 
