By GUY PRIEL

Journal Staff Writer

WASHINGTON -- With a Congressional recess less than a month away, Second District Rep. David Minge, a Democrat, introduced legislation designed to help farmers in a time of low prices.

The bill, called Flex Fallow, allows farmers to participate in short-term conservation use of farmland while maintaining planting flexibility.

This would allow farmers to conserve a part of their total acreage in exchange for higher loan rates on their remaining production. This will provide support during years of low commodity prices, Minge said Thursday during a telephone conference call.

"Minnesota farmers are facing an economic calamity with collapsing farm prices," he said. "Freedom to Farm failed to provide an adequate safety net for family farmers. It also largely ignored the importance of conservation efforts."

The flex fallow bill is a companion piece of legislation to a previously-introduced Senate bill proposed by Tim Johnson of South Dakota, a Democrat. The bill was developed by two South Dakota farmers working for two years on the package they presented to Johnson.

The bill is an open program which allows producers to voluntarily set aside 30 percent of their acreage for conservation usage and receive higher loan rates on their remaining crop production.

A report by the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute indicates that farmer participation in the program results in higher net farm income in low price years.

"Producers continue to struggle with plentiful supplies and low prices," Rep. Doug Bereuter, R-Neb., said. He helped introduce the bill. "While there are no easy answers, there are some steps we can take to help farmers."

Minge admitted that the bill may not be considered during this Congressional session, but he intends to push to guarantee that it is brought up in the next session.

"If we wait to fix Freedom to Farm until the 2002 Farm Bill, we won't have any family farmers left to help," Minge said. "Congress needs to provide a meaningful safety net for our nation's family farmers now."

There is an average of 30 percent of acres set aside in this type of program. This bill will encourage more farmers to set land aside. Net farm income has dropped $9 billion between 1999 and 2000, Minge said.

Another piece of legislation introduced by Minge calls for re-authorization of the United States Grain Standards Act.

This bill will provide authority for the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration, and specifically the Federal Grain Inspections Service. The agencies accurately certify grain quality, while providing uniform inspection and weighing for grain products, Minge said.

"It is important to American Agriculture to maintain a professional and independent grain inspection service that has the trust of all participants in the grain trade," Minge said. "It is also very important that we re-authorize this legislation in a very timely fashion."

Legal authority for the collection of fees by the federal Grain Inspection Service was last renewed in 1993. This bill will provide a five-year re-authorization through September 2005, Minge said.

Fees collected cover administrative and supervisory expenses associated with grain inspection as well as fees for the testing of equipment used in performing official inspection, official weighting, or supervision of weighing of grain.

The authorization for the collection of fees by the Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration will expire Sept. 30. About 80 percent of the grain inspection budget is received through the collection of fees, and 20 percent from the government.

"This is an important issue to be discussing in this session," Minge said. "The bill is currently before the House agriculture committee."

Minge also introduced a bill that will provide a tax credit for small ethanol producers, which is similar to one introduced by Republican Rod Grams in the Senate.

The bill will allow ethanol plants that produce less than 30 million gallons per year a tax credit of 10 cents per gallon.

"A proposed amendment to the bill will allow the same tax credit for producers with a capacity of up to 60 million gallons a year," Minge said.

Many of the proposals will be put aside until after the budget has been approved, because the fiscal year begins Oct. 1, Minge said.

"Many feel the appropriation discussions will wait until after the election," he said. "This is not acceptable. It is not the way to run the country."