Lucas’ bipartisan bill aims to reform nation’s cattle market

U.S. Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK) last week introduced comprehensive bipartisan legislation that would make improvements to U.S. cattle pricing and bolster both transparency and risk management in the nation’s cattle market.

“As we continue to weather economic and health conditions of the pandemic,” Rep. Lucas said, “Congress and USDA must provide solutions to ease the burdens currently felt by cattle ranchers.”

Rep. Lucas is among 12 original cosponsors of the Price Reform in Cattle Economies (PRICE) Act, H.R. 8489, with bill sponsor U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD), which would combine several new ideas with existing bipartisan proposals to create consensus legislation that would eliminate regulatory barriers, improve market signals, and support small meat processors, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.

Introduction of H.R. 8489 was prompted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) July 22 Box Beef and Fed Cattle Price Spread Investigation Report, which identified several systemic issues in the U.S. cattle market, according to Rep. Lucas’ office.

“From natural disasters to the fire in Holcomb, Kan., to the current health pandemic gripping our nation, cattle producers across our country have faced significant disruption,” Rep. Lucas said. “My chief concern is the well-being of my neighbors and the cattlemen and women who have been working diligently during these troubling times to continue to provide high-quality beef for the American consumer.”

H.R. 8489 would provide for greater price reporting and transparency; comprehensive risk management solutions; improved small processor and producer-owned cooperative processing opportunities; and would update the Packer and Stockyards Act to create a cattle contract library, according to the bill summary.

U.S. Reps. Tom Emmer (R-MN) and Darren Soto (D-FL) are among the lawmakers who joined Rep. Lucas as original cosponsors of H.R. 8489, which received endorsements from the American Farm Bureau Federation and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.