96th Congress > House > Vote 1159
Description: TO AGREE TO A CONFERENCE REPORT ON S. 1125, TO IMPROVE AND EXTEND THE FEDERAL CROP INSURANCE PROGRAM. (MOTION PASSED)
Bill summary: (Conference report filed in House, H. Rept. 96-1272)
Federal Crop Insurance Act of 1980 - =Title I: Federal Crop Insurance Program= - Amends the Federal Crop Insurance Act to increase the capital stock of the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation from $200,000,000 to $500,000,000, effective October 1, 1980.
Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to cancel, without consideration, receipts for payments for or on account of the stock of the Corporation outstanding within 30 days after the date of
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enactment of this Act, and states that such receipts shall cease to be liabilities of the Corporation.
Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to appoint three active farmers, who are not otherwise employed by the Federal Government, to the new Corporation's Board of Directors. Increases the maximum compensation of Board members not otherwise employed by the Government to no greater than the daily rate for GS-18.
Removes the State court jurisdiction and grants exclusive jurisdiction to Federal district courts of all suits brought by or against the Corporation.
Directs the Board of Directors to use private insurance companies in the administration of the Federal crop insurance program, to the maximum extent feasible. Directs the Board to idemnify private insurance agents and brokers for errors or omissions by it or its contractors.
Requires the Corporation to offer lesser levels of yield coverage than the standard 75 percent coverage, including coverage at the 50 percent level, at the producer's option. States that any insurance so offered shall make available a choice of price elections, one of which approximates (but is not less than) 90 percent of the projected market price of the commodity.
Permits producers to: (1) elect to delegate the Corporation insurance policy the coverage against losses caused by both hail and fire; (2) obtain coverage therefor from a private insurer; and (3) receive between a 15 and 30 percent reduction of premium in such cases.
Requires the Corporation to pay 30 percent of each producer's premium as calculated on any coverage on the Corporation's insurance policy up to a maximum of 65 percent of the recorded or appraised average yield. Permits any State to pay to the Corporation an additional premium subsidy to further reduce the portion of the premium paid by farmers in such State.
Repeals: (1) the authority to determine indemnities on the same price basis at which the premium was calculated; and (2) the requirement that one Corporation post a list of indemnities paid for farm losses at each county courthouse.
Authorizes the Corporation to reinsure insurers, including private insurance companies or pools of such companies, and reinsurers of such companies, or any State, territorial, or local government entity, which insure producers of any agricultural commodity under an acceptable plan, including a test program made available, to the maximum extent possible, not later than the 1982 crop year. Requires the Corporation to pay: (1) a portion of each producer's premium for such insurance so reinsured, covering the same percent of the premium and subject to the same restrictions as Federal partial payments of Federal crop insurance premiums; and (2) operating and administrative costs to insurers of policies on which the Corporation provides reinsurance, to the same extent that such costs are covered by appropriated funds on the Corporation's insurance policies. Requires that insurers of policies on which reinsurance is provided make use of licensed private insurance agents and brokers on the same basis as required of Corporation policies.
Authorizes the Corporation to provide crop insurance or reinsurance in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands.
Requires insurance on yields of timber and forests to include appreciation (including interest charges) as an insurable cost of production in calculating indemnities and premiums.
Removes the $12,000,000 ceiling on annual appropriations. Limits to 200 the additional full-time employees employed to implement this Act, except in emergencies.
Authorizes the Corporation to borrow directly from the Treasury, in amounts provided in appropriation Acts, if moneys available to the Corporation are sufficient to indemnify producers for losses. Authorizes the use of premium income and other Corporation funds for agents' commissions and the direct costs of loss adjusters.
Authorizes the Secretary to use Commodity Credit Corporation funds to meet obligations to indemnify producers for losses, and otherwise in discharging Federal Crop Insurance Corporation functions and responsibility only when approved by the Board of the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation. Limits such authorization to one year.
Directs the Corporation to conduct a pilot program of individual risk underwriting of crop insurance and to report on such program to the appropriate congressional committees. Requires the Corporation to conduct surveys, pilot programs, and investigations relating to crop insurance and agriculture-related risks and losses and to report on such programs to the appropriate congressional committees.
Repeals the Secretary's authority to appoint an advisory committee.
Expands crop insurance coverage to include tomatoes, grain sorghum, sunflowers, raisins, oranges, sweet corn, dry peas, freezing and canning peas, forage, apples, grapes, potatoes, nursery crops, native grass, and aquacultural services. Excludes livestock and stored grain from such coverage.
=Title II: Disaster Payments= - Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to extend to the 1980 and 1981 crops of wheat, feed grains, upland cotton, and rice, the farm and prevented planting disaster programs. Denies eligibility for such payments to anyone electing to be covered by crop insurance paid for in part by the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation. Requires the Secretary to notify producers of such commodities of their right to elect between disaster payments and crop insurance coverage.
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Bill titles: A bill to improve and expand the Federal crop insurance program, and for other purposes.
Original source documents: Digest of the Congressional Record vol. 144, p. 9023;
Links for more info on the vote: congress.gov
