84R21346 RMA-D
By: Springer H.C.R. No. 112
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Among the most urgent issues facing Texas is the
recent prolonged drought, which has caused a number of crop
failures on irrigated land; those occurrences have highlighted the
necessity for policies that promote responsible water usage and
water conservation; and
WHEREAS, The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, managed by
the Risk Management Agency of the United States Department of
Agriculture, supports the economic stability of agriculture
through its crop insurance program, which assists American farmers
and agricultural entities in managing risk and the threat of
natural disasters; in the event of a crop failure, however, current
FCIC policy requires farmers to demonstrate good faith practices,
which include watering the failed crop, in order to qualify for
insurance benefits; and
WHEREAS, The USDA could further help sustain the agricultural
industry and our precious water resources by developing provisions
that encourage water conservation when crop failures occur; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 84th Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby respectfully urge the United States Congress to encourage
the U.S. Department of Agriculture to revise existing policies that
promote the waste of water after an irrigated crop has been declared
a failure; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
the secretary of agriculture, to the president of the Senate and the
speaker of the House of Representatives of the Congress of the
United States, to the chair of the House Committee on Agriculture
and the chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition,
and Forestry, and to all members of the Texas delegation to Congress
with the request that this resolution be officially entered in the
Congressional Record as a memorial to the Congress of the United
States of America.