{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://fischbach.house.gov/2021/7/rep-fischbach-urges-emergency-waiver-for-haying-grazing-of-crp-lands", "Rep. Fischbach Urges Emergency Waiver for Haying, Grazing of CRP Lands", "2021-07-15", "2021", "2021-07", "Republican", "House", "MN", "Michelle Fischbach", "F000470", "fischbach.house.gov", "fischbach", "https://fischbach.house.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Congresswoman Michelle Fischbach (R-MN) and U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) sent a letter to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack urging the department to grant an emergency waiver for haying and grazing on Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) lands in Minnesota.\n\n\u201cMost of western and southern Minnesota is experiencing a severe drought, and there are no signs of improvement,\u201d said Congresswoman Fischbach. \u201cThere are reports that herd culling is already being done around the region due to a lack of quality feed, and we need to take action to ensure the circumstances do not worsen. I join my colleagues in urging USDA to take immediate action to allow for haying and grazing on CRP lands.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe are very appreciative of Congresswoman Fischbach\u2019s support for opening emergency haying and grazing on CRP land. Forage quality and drought concerns are worsening daily, and immediate action is needed for our producers across the state,\u201d said Grant Breitkreutz, president of the Minnesota State Cattlemen\u2019s Association.\n\n\u201cMinnesota Farm Bureau appreciates the leadership of Congresswoman Fischbach and the Minnesota delegation strongly encouraging USDA to authorize emergency haying and grazing on CRP lands before August 1,\u201d said Kevin Paap, president of the Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation. \u201cThe series of compounding weather events in 2021, from the late May freeze to the current drought conditions, has escalated the need for quality forage to properly care for livestock.\u201d\n\n\u201cMany of the western states are experiencing extremely dry conditions and the upper Midwest has not been spared from this widespread drought. These drought conditions will soon cause challenges for Minnesota livestock producers as quality of the second cutting hay harvests and grazing lands deteriorates,\u201d the letter reads. \u201cTo date, USDA has already authorized 29 counties for emergency hazing and grazing. However, unless access to additional pasturelands are made available, the scarcity and high cost of hay could force farmers and ranchers to liquidate their herds.\u201d\n\nUnder current law, CRP lands cannot be used for haying and grazing in Minnesota before August 1. However, emergency waivers have historically been granted due to natural disasters such as a drought. Authorization to hay and graze on CRP lands is automatically triggered if the U.S. Drought Monitor classifies an area as being in a \u201csevere drought\u201d or worse for more than eight weeks.\n\nThe letter echoes a similar call from Minnesota\u2019s largest agricultural advocacy groups, including the Minnesota State Cattlemen\u2019s Association, the Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation, the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association, and the Minnesota Corn Growers Association.\n\nThe letter can be found here.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:03:51Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://fischbach.house.gov/2021/7/rep-fischbach-urges-emergency-waiver-for-haying-grazing-of-crp-lands"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9802021086215973, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}