Hello,   Please find below a letter signed by 51 farm, lending, ag input and crop insurance and reinsurance organizations expressing strong support for the agreement to unwind both the policy and the cut to crop insurance during the omnibus.   Click here for a PDF version of the letter.     Thank you for your consideration.     CROP INSURANCE AND REINSURANCE BUREAU 440 First Street NW Suite 500 Washington, DC 20001 P: 202.544.5084 www.cropinsurance.org   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  November 24, 2015     All Representatives:    Crop insurance is a linchpin of the farm safety net and is crucial to the economic security of rural America. We write today first to thank those Members who came to the defense of crop insurance during the recent budget debate. We also write to express our strong support for the agreement to unwind both the policy and the cut to crop insurance during the omnibus. We applaud assurances that any funding needed for this correction will not come out of the jurisdiction of the Agriculture Committees. The agriculture community is strongly committed to the belief that balancing the Federal budget is important, which is why the industry supported the passage of the 2014 Farm Bill just last year that saves tens of billions of dollars. The bill is a careful balance of priorities and should not be reopened before its expiration in 2018. Additionally, crop insurance has contributed well over $12 billion towards reducing government spending since the 2008 Farm Bill. For these reasons, the industries represented on this letter should not be impacted by any necessary offset. The crop insurance provision contained in the recently-enacted budget deal would gut the private sector delivery of crop insurance by cutting USDA's assumed target rate of return by 38%. Since the 2011 Standard Reinsurance Agreement (SRA) was implemented by USDA, crop insurance providers have averaged negative net returns. The inevitable result of this provision would be increased industry consolidation, reduced choice in insurance providers for all farmers, and a dramatic decline in the availability and service of policies. This cut would ultimately end private sector delivery of crop insurance.  The alternative to a successful crop insurance system is often ad hoc disaster assistance, which is subject to the whim of Washington, is paid for entirely by the taxpayer, is not delivered in a timely manner, and may help a producer survive a disaster but does not help manage risk. Ad hoc disaster assistance also does not provide the confidence needed by lenders to provide farmers and ranchers the capital they need to produce our nation's food, fuel and fiber. Today, the vast majority of cropland is protected by crop insurance, which has allowed U.S. farmers and ranchers to face back-to-back years of wide scale natural disasters without annual calls for ad hoc disaster bills. Farmers and lawmakers agree that crop insurance is an essential risk management tool in a farmer's risk management tool box. As an omnibus appropriations bill is negotiated, we urge you to uphold the promise to make the crop insurance program whole again without re-opening the farm bill. Sincerely,    American Bankers Association American Bankers Insurance Association  American Association of Crop Insurers American Farm Bureau Federation American Farmland Trust American Insurance Association American Malting Barley Association American Seed Trade Association American Sesame Growers Association American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers American Soybean Association American Sugarbeet Growers Association of Equipment Manufacturers California Association of Winegrape Growers Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau Crop Insurance Professionals Association Ducks Unlimited Equipment Dealers Association Farm Credit Council Financial Services Roundtable Florida Sugar Cane League Independent Community Bankers of America Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies National Association of Professional Insurance Agents National Association of State Departments of Agriculture National Association of Wheat Growers National Barley Growers Association National Corn Growers Association National Cotton Council National Council of Farmer Cooperatives National Farmers Union National Grain and Feed Association National Peach Council National Potato Council National Sorghum Producers National Sunflower Association Reinsurance Association of America Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers Southern Peanut Farmers Federation Southwest Council of Agribusiness U.S. Apple Association U.S. Beet Sugar Association U.S. Canola Association U.S. Dry Bean Council U.S. Rice Producers Association U.S.A. Dry Pea & Lentil Council U.S.A Rice United Fresh Produce Association Western Growers Association Western Peanut Growers Association