RULE XXVI

In compliance with Rule XXVI, paragraphs 11(b) (regulatory impact) and 12 (comparative prints of proposed legislation) of the Standing Rules of the Senate, it is the opinion of the Budget Committee that it is necessary to dispense with these requirements of the rule in order to expedite the business of the Senate.

However, with respect to any committee which has submitted reconciliation recommendations and has transmitted to the Budget Committee changes in existing law, those changes are incorporated in this report without revision, in the title-by-title analysis.

ROLLCALL VOTES IN COMMITTEE

Votes taken during Committee consideration of this legislation were as follows:

(1) Hollings motion to report the Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1982 without recommendation.

Rejected by voice vote.

Mr. Chiles requested to be recorded "aye" on the Hollings motion. Mr. Exon, had he been present, would have voted "aye" on the Hollings motion.

(2) Domenici motion to report the Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1982 with the recommendation that the bill do pass.

Motion agreed to by 13 yeas, 4 nays.

TITLE-BY-TITLE ANALYSIS

The following is a title-by-title analysis of the legislation. In each case, the analyses of the respective committees are presented without revision, except that attachments and enclosures referred to in committee submissions that are a part of their legislative language have been extracted and inserted in the Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1982.

In addition, the final cost estimates by the Congressional Budget Office were not in some instances available to the committees when they made their submissions to the Budget Committee. In those cases the CBO cost estimates have been added to the materials submitted by the committees.

Enclosed pursuant to the reconciliation instructions in section 2(a)(1) of the First Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for fiscal year 1983 (S. Con. Res. 92) are the recommendations for the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry for reducing spending under laws within its jurisdiction.

In accordance with the instructions, we have drafted (1) the legislative language to effect the reductions in spending required by the resolution, and (2) an explanation of those reductions for inclusion in your report on the reconciliation legislation.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the changes in law adopted by our Committee would reduce spending in both budget authority and outlays for each of the following fiscal years in the amounts indicated:

The Committee recommendations exceed the amount of the instructions by $312 million in fiscal year 1983; by $327 million in fiscal year 1984; and by $311 million in fiscal year 1985.

A detailed explanation of these recommendations is provided for inclusion in the Budget Committee report on these legislative changes in accordance with the reconciliation instructions.

INTRODUCTION

In accordance with the requirements of the First Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for fiscal year 1983, the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry recommends amendments in statutes of the United States under its jurisdiction to reduce spending and authorizations to the levels required by the reconciliation instructions, and for other purposes.

The budget resolution instructions to this Committee assumed that the savings required would be achieved in the income security budget function 600, specifically with respect to the food stamp program. However, since the budget resolution did not restrict the Committee to function 600 in making its recommendations, it was decided that in addition to the recommendations relating to food stamps, there would also be recommendations under function 350 relating to the dairy price support program and certain features of the wheat, feed grain, cotton, and rice commodity programs, as well as certain authorities governing outlays by the Commodity Credit Corporation for export enhancement.

Inasmuch as the Committee adopted recommendations for spending reductions in the food stamp program that are less than the amounts required by the instructions, it was necessary for the Committee to recommend reductions in spending from other areas under its jurisdiction. This was principally accomplished by amending statutes governing the dairy price support program.

Finally, because of the Committee's concern about the extremely distressed economic conditions in the agriculture sector brought about by unusually low commodity prices and by softness in our traditional export markets, the Committee decided to include in its recommendations provisions to amend farm programs in such a way as to improve farm income, but without causing increases in outlays over the levels already anticipated.

The Committee recommendations relating to the farm commodity programs are designed to meet the immediate farm income crisis by providing partial payment to farmers of deficiency payments that would otherwise be made in December 1982 in October 1982, instead.

Also, in recognition of the unfair trading practices of certain nations which compete with the United States in the world food and fiber markets, the Committee includes in its recommendations a mandatory requirement for the Secretary of Agriculture to provide certain export subsidies in instances where he has determined that other nations are offering similar subsidies that have the effect of taking away traditional United States markets.

Prior to the reconciliation markup the Committee held 2 days of hearings on the food stamp program, at which 42 witnesses offered testimony. Also, the Committee conducted 2 days of hearings on the dairy price support program, hearing 38 witnesses.

The Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry has met its reconciliation instructions, and in fact, exceeded the required amount of savings as is indicated in the statistical summary which follows: