Yesterday, Congressman Joe Donnelly signed a discharge petition to bring the 2012 Farm Bill to the House floor for a vote. Although the Farm Bill passed the House Agriculture Committee with strong bipartisan support in July, House leadership has not scheduled the bill for a vote on the House floor. Should the discharge petition receive signatures from a majority of House members, the Farm Bill will be called immediately to the floor of the House of Representatives. If Congress does not act to pass a new Farm Bill, the current Farm Bill will expire on September 30, 2012. “I signed this discharge petition in order to force House leadership to bring the Farm Bill up for a vote,” said Donnelly. “I stand with Hoosier farmers, and I will continue to demand a vote on a new Farm Bill. Hoosier farmers deserve the certainty of a five-year Farm Bill, and I hope my Republican and Democratic colleagues will join me in signing this petition so our farmers will no longer have to worry about Congress’s inaction.”
On July 12, the 2012 Farm Bill passed out of the House Agriculture Committee by a bipartisan vote of 35 to 11. In July, Donnelly joined a bipartisan letter to House leadership requesting that they bring the 2012 Farm Bill to the House floor before the August District Work Period. He also gave a speech on the House floor urging his colleagues to pass a new Farm Bill. Wednesday, Donnelly attended the Farm Bill Now rally on the National Mall with Hoosier farmers to show his support for bringing the Farm Bill to the House floor for a vote.
To see a list of House members who have signed the discharge petition, click here.