New Statewide Poll Shows California Residents Want Real Farm Bill Reform on Eve of Historic House of Representatives Vote

(Washington, D.C. – July 25, 2007) – California residents want their members of Congress to support real Farm Bill reform, like the Fairness in Farm and Food Policy Amendment, and reject legislation that maintains the status quo on farm subsidies, like the House Agriculture Committee’s farm bill, according to a statewide opinion survey conducted for Environmental Defense.

The poll of 2,477 California adults was conducted between July 20^th and July 23^rd by the nationally recognized pollster, Zogby International. The Fairness in Farm and Food Policy Amendment will be offered on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday as an alternative to the House Agriculture Committee’s bill, which keeps farm subsidy programs intact and shortchanges federal nutrition, conservation, renewable energy and fruit and vegetable programs.

“The people of California are speaking loudly and clearly to their U.S. representatives and senators,” said Scott Faber, director of Environmental Defense’s farm policy campaign. “They want them to vote for a new kind of farm bill that will mean cleaner water, healthier food and renewable energy for their state.”

Key results of the poll included the following:

Ø      77% of respondents stated that they would support reforming the farm bill to shift money from farm subsidy programs and give priority funding to programs that help make water cleaner; promote a healthier food supply; and encourage farmers to produce renewable energy. Only 12% stated that they would oppose such reform.

Ø      74% of respondents said that they would urge their member of Congress and senators to work and vote for those reforms when they are considered. Only 17% disagreed.

Ø      59% of respondents agreed that they would urge their congressional representative and U.S. senators not to support a new farm bill unless it gives priority funding to programs that protect their streams, rivers, lakes and bays. Only 29% disagreed.

“The poll shows that voting for real farm bill reform and against the status quo will not only be good policy, but will be good politics as well,” stated Faber. “The strong support of the public paves the way for California’s congressional delegation to make the right choice and vote for the ‘Fairness’ Amendment.”

Additional evidence that the Fairness Amendment is right for California was provided by a study comparing the economic impacts of the Amendment with the economic benefits of extending the 2002 Farm Bill.  The study, which was conducted for Environmental Defense by a former USDA official, found that the benefits to California from the Fairness in Farm and Food Policy Amendment would be $581 million greater than extending the 2002 Farm Bill. Nationwide, 348 or 80% of the country’s 435 congressional districts would be better off with the Amendment than with extending the 2002 Farm Bill.

 “This should be an easy decision for California’s members of Congress when the will of the people of the state and the economic data are considered,” concluded Faber. “As the poll and the economic study show, the Fairness in Farm and Food Policy Amendment was tailor-made for the state of California.”

To learn more about the findings of the study for each congressional district, visit: http://www.environmentaldefense.org/documents/6656_Fairness%20Amendment%20District%20by%20District%20Analysis.xls

About the Zogby poll:

The poll had a sample size of 2,477 California adults. The margin of error was +/- 2.0 percentage points. Zogby International has assembled a database of individuals who have registered to take part in online polls through solicitations on the company’s Web site as well as other Web sites that span the political spectrum. Individuals who registered were asked to provide personal information such as home state, age and political party to Zogby, which in turn examined that data and contacted individuals by telephone to confirm that it was valid. To solicit participation, Zogby sent e-mails to individuals who had asked to join its online-polling database, inviting them to complete an interactive poll. Many individuals who have participated in Zogby’s telephone surveys also have submitted e-mail addresses so they may take part in online polls. Weights are applied to ensure that the selection of participants accurately reflects characteristics of the population, including age, race and gender. For information about the reliability of Zogby’s online polls, visit: http://interactive.zogby.com/