TABLE 6.-Tentative county figures for the average annual loss per acre (in bushels) to insure the wheat crop up to specified percentages of the average yield on the insured farm-Continued

TABLE 6.-Tentative county figures for the average annual loss per acre (in bushels) to insure the wheat crop up to specified percentages of the average yield on the insured farm-Continued

RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED ON DECEMBER 3, 1936, BY REPRESENTATIVES OF WHEAT PRODUCERS AND PRESENTED TO THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE AS CHAIRMAN OF THE PRESIDENT'S CROP INSURANCE COMMITTEE

1. It is moved, seconded, and carried that we recommend to the general body that it resolve itself into a formal conference body to be known as the Wheat Conservation Conference, and that it solicit the participation of all interested agricultural groups.

2. It is moved, seconded, and carried that we recommend to the general body the adoption of broad general principles which we may insist shall underlie any legislation proposed to or in Congress covering crop insurance or crop conservation for wheat; and that the folllowing be accepted as outlining such fundamentals: As an implement to establish farm programs, the President has created and directed a Crop Insurance Committee to study the farm problem, to consult with farmers or their representatives, and to report to him a program for legislative consideration which may provide increased assurance of: A. Equality of social security for agriculture.

B. An ample supply of food and fiber to meet the full need of our Nation. C. Relief from the devastating influences of violent swings of farm prices resulting from abundance at one time and scarcity at another.

As the result of rugged agricultural individualism and an archaic system of distribution, society has suffered an irreparable loss, through a low standard of living for the farm family, and the erosion of farm land and the destruction of improvements. The social loss is incalculable.

Because of lack of plans, and plans declared unconstitutional, the taxpayers have been required to pay hundreds of millions of dollars into the Federal Treasury to provide many types of agricultural relief to bankrupt farmers-subsidies in many forms. Some of these subsidies may be listed as including those for feed, seed, doles, made work, charity, and what not.

In lieu of the many subsidies presently being paid from the Federal Treasury agriculture desires, as apparently the President also desires, that as soon as possible a business plan with a lesser annual cost to the taxpayers and with a fair deal to the farmer may be devised and applied as an implement to those farm programs now in effect.

The more important farm programs now available are:

A. The Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act, which provides income to participating farmers for agricultural conservation and for some degree of production control.

B. The Commodity Credit Corporation, which has the funds and the power to make loans upon stored agricultural commodities for the purpose of increasing. farm income by attempting to create fair prices.

C. The impounding of 30 percent of the customs receipts as financial assistance to the Agricultural Adjustment Administration for the provident distribution of burdensome surpluses of agricultural commodities.

All farmers producing wheat for sale have a common interest in one or all aspects of the new and additional farm program here under consideration.

To protect the income of all wheat producers, we may contemplate the following important aspects:

1. Adjustment of production.

2. Ever-normal granary. Efficient warehousing of wheat premium reserves and the storage of wheat for deferred sale-awaiting demand at fair prices.

3. Reasonable loans against stored wheat upon a collateral basis and made in relation to a fair price, rather than a speculative price.

4. Yield insurance upon a coinsurance basis.

5. Provident disposal of burdensome surpluses.

6. Requirement of adherence (excepting special cases) to the Agricultural Conservation program and acceptance of yield insurance as part of the qualifications for eligibility to the benefit of the ever-normal granary fair loan program.

7. The administrative expenses and warehousing costs with a very substantial portion of yield insurance costs to be borne by the Federal Government until such time as a system of production and distribution of wheat has been effectuated which will permit the producer to manage and conduct his business and enjoy the degree of social security indicated by the President in his letter to the Crop Insurance Committee and his repeated statements to the electorate.

The temporary committee for this Wheat Conservation Conference has attempted to outline a most general five-point program in an effort to meet what we believe to be the needs of wheat growers and within the general views expressed by the President as a further step towards social security for the wheat farmer and a fair deal to consumers, as follows:

1. Assumption of responsibility by the Federal Government to provide adequate capital to establish the program.

2. Appropriation for acquisition and maintenance of warehousing facilities. 3. The program to be administered by a corporation.

4. Voluntary but capable of integration with other farm programs.

5. Cover all unavoidable hazards.

M. W. THATCHER, Chairman.

(Whereupon, at 12 noon, the subcommittee adjourned until 10 a. m.,

Friday, Feb. 26, 1937.)

FEDERAL CROP INSURANCE

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 1937

UNITED STATES SENATE,

SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON

AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY,

Washington, D. C.

The subcommittee met, pursuant to adjournment, in the committee room, 324 Senate Office Building, at 10 a. m., Senator James P. Pope presiding.

Present also: Senator McGill, Senator Schwellenbach, and Senator Frazier.

Senator POPE. The committee will be in order. I think it would be well to proceed with the witnesses we had yesterday and develop the method, the calculations and the data used in arriving at what seemed to be a reasonable premium and arriving at the average yields of wheat in the various sections of the country.

Now, Mr. Black, who in your group will be best able to handle that matter?

STATEMENT OF A. G. BLACK, CHIEF, BUREAU OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Mr. BLACK. Mr. Green would be best in our group, and I don't believe that I could add a great deal to that discussion. I wonder however, if it might be possible for me to discuss one or two general matters before the committee and then perhaps the committee won't need to have me here after today, in case Mr. Green does not finish. Senator POPE. Very well, Mr. Black, you go ahead and discuss the general matters that you have in mind, and then we can proceed with the data, tables and charts and the like, with Mr. Green and other witnesses, although we would be glad to have you here as long as you can stay.

Mr. BLACK. Senator McGill asked yesterday about the inclusion of other crops in this measure. If one looks back into the legislative history of crop insurance over 10 or 15 years he will find that the Department on various occasions has made a noncommittal report on the matter. They have approved the crop-insurance proposal in principle but have said that they did not feel that they had sufficient background data to base a crop insurance program on and were unable to state whether the specific bill on which they were reporting was practical administratively or not.

Now for the first time we feel that we have accumulated enough data on which to base a practical crop-insurance program for wheat. Our investigations so far indicate that the data on other crops are too fragmentary yet to be sure that we have a satisfactory basis, and