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U.S. Senators set bill seeking overhaul of food aid rules - source

by Reuters
Tuesday, 3 June 2014 13:00 GMT

A woman carries a bag of rice from USAID as part of food distributed by various relief agencies in Cite Soleil, Port-au-Prince February 18, 2010. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

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Ending restrictions on international food aid programs could get aid to some 9 million more hungry people

By Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON, June 3 (Reuters) - Two U.S. lawmakers will introduce legislation on Tuesday to end restrictions on international food aid programs, which they say would free up hundreds of millions of dollars per year and get aid to some 9 million more hungry people around the world.

U.S. Senators Bob Corker of Tennessee, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Democrat Chris Coons of Delaware, chairman of the Africa subcommittee, are jointly introducing the "Food for Peace Reform Act of 2014," according to a copy of the bill obtained by Reuters.

President Barack Obama's administration has been pushing to overhaul the $1.4 billion U.S. food aid program for years. But his efforts have faced stiff resistance, especially from U.S. shipping companies that say they would cost jobs.

The program is restricted by laws requiring that most food be produced in the United States rather than purchased locally, which means it can cost more and take months to reach needy people, often arriving too late to be of much help in case of famine or disaster.

Half must also be transported on U.S. vessels, which can also add time and double the cost. That restriction was loosened two years ago. Before 2012, three-quarters of all food aid had to be sent on U.S. ships.

The Corker-Coons bill would allow both U.S. and locally or regionally procured commodities, vouchers or cash transfers to be used for aid, depending on which is the most cost effective option.

Backers of the bill said the effect on U.S. agriculture would be small, noting that U.S. food aid contributed only 0.86 percent of total U.S. agricultural exports from 2002-2011 and just 1.41 percent of net farm income.

The bill also would let the U.S. Agency for International Development ship food on whatever vessels were readily available. Studies have shown that the cargo preference requirement meant that aid shipped at rates 46 percent higher than competitive market rates.

The bill also would end "monetization," a requirement that 15 percent of all U.S. donated food be sold first by aid organizations, producing cash that would fund development projects.

Backers of the bill said eliminating monetization would save 25 cents out of every taxpayer dollar spent, and could feed 800,000 more people and free some $30 million per year.

The legislation would also transfer current food aid authorities from the Farm bill - a giant package governing U.S. agriculture - into the Foreign Assistance Act. (Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Ken Wills)

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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