Staff reports
LYONS, NEBRASKA – In what the Center for Rural Affairs calls a win for rural communities, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 on Friday, August 12. Included in the package is funding for working lands conservation and investments in clean energy for rural communities.
“This package will positively impact rural people across the country,” said Johnathan Hladik, policy director for the Center for Rural Affairs.
Included in the Inflation Reduction Act is $3.25 billion for the Conservation Stewardship Program and $8.45 billion for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program through fiscal year 2026. This funding will provide farmers interested in implementing conservation practices a better chance at receiving funding.
“We know these working lands conservation programs have been severely underfunded and oversubscribed,” Hladik said. “This funding will address the backlog of farmers who have applied for financial assistance and not received a contract due to lack of program resources.”
The Inflation Reduction Act also provides significant investments in the energy sector by allocating roughly $30 billion in grant and loan programs for state and electric utilities to accelerate the transition to clean electricity. The package contains a special focus on rural electric cooperatives.
“These investments in localized, renewable energy will result in energy cost savings for consumers and increased reliability of the electricity sector,” Hladik said.
Johnson Statement on the Inflation Bill
Washington, D.C. –U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) issued the following statement after the U.S. House passed the $739 billion Inflation Reduction Act on a party-line vote:
“This week’s 8.5% inflation report is a resounding alarm the Left continues to ignore,” said Johnson. “Americans are facing record-high inflation – more spending is not the answer. In the last two years alone, I’ve opposed nearly $10 trillion in government spending. This bill further risks increasing prices of goods across the board.
“Congress should turn its focus to solutions that will solve the supply chain crisis, increase domestic energy production, and get workforce participation back to pre-pandemic levels. The majority of South Dakotans are feeling the pressure of inflation every time they have to take out their wallet. The alarm bells have been going off for a long time – it’s time to listen.”
South Dakota Democratic Party Celebrated the Passage of the Inflation Reduction Act
SD Democrats say that the Inflation Reduction Act, will lower the cost of prescription drugs, health insurance, and energy and fight inflation.
They argue that South Dakota Republicans Sen. John Thune, Sen. Mike Rounds, and Rep. Dusty Johnson voted against the Inflation Reduction Act - choosing to side with Big Pharma and the ultra-wealthy instead of South Dakotans and our ag industry.
“While Democrats are focused on fighting inflation and tackling the climate crisis, South Dakota Republicans have repeatedly voted against legislation that would better the lives of their constituents. South Dakotans deserve leaders who will pick people over special interest groups and help lower costs for families,” said SDDP Chair Randy Seiler.
They said that this legislation will also benefit South Dakota farmers who play an important role in ethanol production with provisions for the production of clean fuels and infrastructure for higher biofuel blends. They also said the Inflation Reduction Act will take significant steps to reduce inflation, address the climate crisis, and make health care, especially prescription drugs, more affordable.
