12/07/05 Economist; don`t worry about farm bill

Farm and Ranch December 7, 2005 The next farm bill may have less funding authority than the legislation passed in 2002 but there will be another farm bill and congress will find funding for it. That is what Barry Flinchbaugh, Kansas State University agricultural economist told producers attending last week's Pacific Northwest Grain's Conference in Coeur d'Alene. So despite what will be scary rhetoric from politicians about the federal deficit Flinchbaugh told producers to relax and enjoy their stay at the Coeur d'Alene Resort. He said two key principles necessary for passage of a farm bill are in sync and those are economic capitalization and political capitalization. Flinchbaugh: "The benefits of federal farm programs can be summed up in one sentence. They get capitalized into higher land values and higher rental values." That's the economic capitalization factor and Flinchbaugh had a map showing that some of the biggest drops in land values that would occur if farm program payments ended would be in states from Texas northward to North Dakota. Now superimpose that map over a map of states that gave George Bush some of his biggest margins of victory in the last election. Flinchbaugh: "You couldn't get the maps to go together any better. The political map and the economic map." And that's why Flinchbaugh says congress will find the money for another farm bill and why grain producers shouldn't play their trump cards on budget issues. Tomorrow, Flinchbaugh's predictions on the shape of the next farm bill. I'm Bob Hoff and that's the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report on the Northwest Ag Information Network.