Crop Insurance Today May 2014 - (Page 1)
TODAY PRESIDENT'SMESSAGE
"...Where to now,
St. Peter?"
Laurie Langstraat, Editor
TODAY® IS PROVIDED AS A SERVICE OF
NATIONAL CROP INSURANCE SERVICES®
TO EDUCATE READERS ABOUT THE RISK
MANAGEMENT TOOLS PRODUCERS USE
TO PROTECT THEMSELVES FROM
THE RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH
PRODUCTION AGRICULTURE.
TODAY is published quarterly-February, May,
August, and November by
National Crop Insurance Services
8900 Indian Creek Parkway, Suite 600
Overland Park, Kansas 66210
www.ag-risk.org
If you move, or if your address is incorrect, please
send old address label clipped from recent issue
along with your new or corrected address to
Donna Bryan, at the above address.
This will be the first issue of TODAY® magazine
since the signing of the 2014 Farm Bill. For the past
few years, many of us have spent countless hours speculating, articulating, triangulating, and in some cases
hyper-ventilating about the coming of the Farm Bill.
At a time when Congress has been criticized for doing
nothing, the fact that Congress passed a comprehensive, five-year Farm Bill by an overwhelming bipartisan margin is significant. And the fact Congress chose
crop insurance as the centerpiece for the farm safety
net in the bill is humbling.
Neither accomplishment would have been possible if not for the tireless work of Congressional leaders
from the Senate and House Agriculture Committees
Tom Zacharias, NCIS President
who refused to take no for an answer; the numerous
agricultural associations and the farmers they represent who made crop insurance a top priority; our partners at the USDA's Risk Management
Agency (RMA); representatives from the AIPs who took countless trips to D.C.; the industry's
government relations team; and, new friends like the conservation community.
On behalf of the crop insurance industry, and the customers we serve, thank you.
"...So where to now, St. Peter?"
NCIS® EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Tim Weber, Chairman
Mike Day, Vice Chairman
Jim Korin, Second Vice Chairman
NCIS® MANAGEMENT
Thomas P. Zacharias, President
Charles Lee, General Counsel
James M. Crist, CFO/COO
Frank Schnapp, Senior Vice President
Mike Sieben, Senior Vice President
Creative Layout and Design
by Graphic Arts of Topeka, Inc., Kansas
Printed on recycled paper.
Well, now what? As we look to introduce new risk management tools, such as Supplemental
Coverage Option (SCO) and Stacked Income Protection Plan (STAX), and the elimination of
direct payments, SURE and ACRE, the lyrics of Elton John's song, "Where to now, St. Peter?" come
to mind here:
"...I understand I'm on the road where all that was is gone...show me which road I'm on...."
First, we have to go (or is it "get to go?") through the process of implementing the new legislation. This process is currently underway as the Administration and the staffs of USDA and RMA
draft the various policies, procedures, and regulations that will be required. As appropriate, the
various stakeholders and partners in the delivery system are brought into the various stages of
implementation. As the Carpenter's used to sing "...we've only just begun...."
As we reflect upon the passage of the Bill, those of us in crop insurance need to keep a few
constructs in mind as we go forward. For the Farm Bill and industry to succeed, crop insurance
must be: 1) Available; 2) Affordable; and, 3) Viable. Each of these elements are interdependent and
key to the further sucess of crop insurance. With these ideas in mind, I will be starting a three part
series in the President's Reports dealing with each of these topics. I will attempt to define each of
them and put them into context with each other.
In this issue we will deal with the subject of availability. If crop insurance is to remain
successful, it is vital that the program be widely available to all farmers growing all different
types of commodities.
On a temporal scale, we can think of availability through the lens of Dickens' "Christmas Carol"
Printed with Environmentally
friendly vegetable oil based inks.
Continued on page 38
CropInsurance TODAY®
1
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crop Insurance Today May 2014
“...Where to now, St. Peter?”
2013 Year In Review
NCIS Celebrates Silver Anniversary
2014 Annual Convention Draws Record Numbers
Four Industry Stalwarts Presented Lifetime Achievement Awards
Dan Carothers Receives Outstanding Service Award
Kenny Shock Receives NCIS Industry Leadership Award
Tom Vetter Receives NCIS Industry Leadership Award
Committee Chairs Ready for the Year
Jo Anne Baker Retires Leaving NCIS
Crop Insurance Today May 2014
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