Reps. Crawford, Carter, Higgins Introduce the Prioritizing Offensive Agriculture Disputes and Enforcement Act 

JONESBORO, A.R. -This week, Congressman Rick Crawford (AR-01), Congressman Troy Carter (LA-02), and Congressman Clay Higgins (LA-03) introduced the Prioritizing Offensive Agricultural Disputes and Enforcement Act (H.R. 5620). This legislation establishes an Agricultural Trade Enforcement Task Force made up of appointees from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), and other federal agencies that will: 

• Identify foreign trade barriers to U.S. agricultural product exports that are potentially vulnerable to World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement or other trade agreements.
• Develop and implement a strategy for enforcing violations of trade agreements related to these trade barriers.
• Consult with the private sector, government agencies, and trading partners on best practices to achieve a positive outcome for U.S. agricultural exports. 
• Submit a quarterly report to Congress on progress towards resolving cases or filing disputes.

India continues to egregiously violate price support commitments of the 165 WTO member countries to limit subsidies for developing countries to 10% of the value of production.

The WTO has pegged India’s price supports as based on the value of production at the following levels:

• Rice – 87.9%
• Wheat – 67.5%
• Cotton – 67.9%
• Chickpeas – 31.7%
• Lentils – 41%
• Pulses – 47.4%

Since India is over-subsidizing, the country’s farmers are massively outproducing domestic demand and have the capacity to flood the international market with cheap products, something they have done with agricultural products like rice and shrimp. U.S. farmers are already struggling enough, so this bill will help protect them from further hardship due to unfair practices. 

The Senate companion bill, S. 743 – Ag Disputes Act, was introduced by Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA), John Boozman (R-AR), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Joni Ernst (R-IA), and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL).

“The U.S. needs to be serious about going after violators at the WTO that hurt our farmers. It is not fair for the U.S., and by extension our producers, to play by one set of rules if other countries play by another. International markets that buy our agricultural products play a vital role in the sustainability of the industry. Therefore, I appreciate my colleagues Representative Troy Carter and Representative Clay Higgins joining me to protect our local farmers, ranchers, and agribusinesses from unfair, non-market-based practices,” said Rep. Crawford.

“For too long, America’s farmers have been forced to compete on an uneven global playing field, held back by a lack of enforcement of foreign subsidies that violate trade agreements. I’m proud to cosponsor this important bill, which represents a crucial step in putting U.S. agriculture back on offense. This bipartisan measure provides a dedicated task force to identify systemic trade violations and hold bad actors accountable. American farmers feed the world; we know that better than anyone in Louisiana, and they deserve a fair shot in the global marketplace,” said Rep. Carter.

“America’s farmers are the best in the world, and when given a fair playing field, they will succeed. Unfortunately, countries like India have abused fair trade practices and failed to comply with WTO commitments. The task force established in our legislation will hold bad actors accountable, identify trade barriers, and help protect U.S. farmers,” said Rep. Higgins.

“USA Rice applauds Representative Rick Crawford, Clay Higgins, and Troy Carter for being champions on these critical issues in Congress, not only for the U.S. rice industry, but for all of U.S. agriculture being treated unfairly by bad actors in the market,” said Bobby Hanks, CEO of Supreme Rice in Crowley, Louisiana, and chair of the USA Rice International Trade Policy Committee. “A WTO dispute against India’s subsidies is long overdue. Absent from any meaningful bilateral policy negotiations with India in the last decade, a WTO dispute would drive the long-term policy changes needed in India that would help make U.S. rice farmers, and farmers all around the world, more competitive.”

Read the full bill text here.

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