Of a perfecting nature.

SA 2280. Mr. KOHL submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill H.R. 2997, making appropriations for Agriculture, Rural
Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
programs for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2010, and for other
purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the appropriate place insert the following:
Whereas sudden loss in late 2008 of export-market based
demand equivalent to about three percent of domestic milk
production has thrown the U.S. dairy industry into a critical
supply-demand imbalance; and
Whereas an abrupt decline in U.S. exports was fueled by the
onset of the global economic crisis combined with resurgence
of milk supplies in Oceania; and
Whereas the U.S. average all-milk price reported by the
National Agriculture Statistics Service from January through
May of 2009, has averaged $4.80 per hundredweight below the
cost of production; and
Whereas approximately $3.9 billion in dairy producer equity
has been lost since January; and
Whereas anecdotal evidence suggests that U.S. dairy
producers are losing upwards of $100 per cow per month; and
Whereas the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008
extended the counter-cyclical Milk Income Loss Contract
(MILC) support program and instituted a ``feed cost
adjuster'' to augment that support; and
Whereas the Secretary of Agriculture in March transferred
approximately 200 million pounds of nonfat dry milk to USDA's
food and Nutrition Service in a move designed to remove
inventory from the market and support low-income families;
and
Whereas the Secretary on March 22nd reactivated USDA's
Dairy Export Incentive Program (DEIP) to help U.S. producers
meet prevailing world prices and develop international
markets; and
Whereas the Secretary announced on July 31, 2009 a
temporary increase in the amount paid for dairy products
through the Dairy Product Price Support Program (DPPSP), an
adjustment that is projected to increase dairy farmers'
revenue by $243 million; and
Whereas U.S. dairy producers face unprecedented challenges
that threaten the stability of the industry, the nation's
milk production infrastructure, and thousands of rural
communities: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that the
Secretary of Agriculture and the President's Office of
Management and Budget should continue to closely monitor the
U.S. dairy sector and use all available discretionary
authority to ensure its long-term health and sustainability.
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