2.5 million dollar 'means test' arrives in 2003

摘要

Commodity certificates may get exemption. For many years, major farm and commodity organizations beat back the concept of "means testing" in eligibility for farm program payments. Limitations on the size of payments to each farmer were not popular everywhere, but many farm groups considered means testing even more unpalatable. That's because it puts USDA into a role of examining farmers' income tax records. Nonetheless, when the smoke cleared over the new farm bill last spring Congress had imposed means testing. With the commodities programs grabbing most of USDA's and farmers' attention, however, the means test was hardly noticed until the Farm Service Agency proposed rules this tall to enforce it. Enforcement must begin with the 2003 crop year.