USDA employees called on to lobby against black farmers

[struggle4progress]

August 7, 2007
By Mike Hasten
[e-mail]

BATON ROUGE — An e-mail message urging U.S. Department of Agriculture employees to lobby the U.S. Senate against a farm bill provision favoring black farmers has alarmed farm groups and an environmental justice group.

The farm bill has a provision that would reopen consideration of late applications filed by black farmers seeking awards from a discrimination lawsuit filed against USDA in 1998. A 1999 settlement reached in the case awarded $50,000 and a percentage of loan forgiveness to all black farmers who had been wrongly denied loans or received them too late to make successful crops, but more than 70,000 applications were rejected as being too late.

Circulated among employees of a USDA branch that works with farm loans, the e-mail message quotes Carolyn Cooksie, deputy administrator for farm loan programs, as saying it would be "awful" to allow 73,000 late filers to qualify for awards and it would probably clear the way for another class action suit. ~snip~

http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070807/NEWS01/708070326/1060/NEWS01


USDA agency launches inquiry into lobbying e-mail
By Anika Gupta [e-mail] August 8, 2007

~snip~ Using government equipment for lobbying activities carries a penalty under the federal Hatch Act but also under criminal statutes, said Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group, an independent organization that focuses on agricultural issues.

If found to have broken the law, employees could face suspension, fines and up to a year's imprisonment. They also could lose their jobs.

As of now, authorship of the e-mail is unclear. The original message called on employees to contact their senators and express opposition for the farm bill. ~snip~

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0807/080807ag1.htm


Agency warns against e-mail against black farmers' settlement
By LARRY O'DELL | Associated Press Writer
August 8, 2007

~snip~ Kim DePasquale, the FSA employee in Fredericksburg who distributed the e-mail, did not return a phone message seeking comment.

John Boyd, president of the National Black Farmers Association, was outraged by the e-mail, which he said appears to violate the Hatch Act--a law that restricts political activity by federal employees.

"They're lobbying against black farmers who can barely defend themselves," Boyd lamented.

The nonprofit Environmental Working Group, which has supported the black farmers' anti-discrimination efforts, asked the USDA's inspector general to investigate. ~snip~

http://www.dailypress.com/news/local/virginia/dp-sou--farmbill-lobbyin0808aug08,0,1913467.story?coll=dp-widget-news

[TygrBright]

1. uh... isn't that a BEYOND FLAGRANT violation of the Hatch Act?? n/t

[struggle4progress]

2. Yah, 'tis. eom

[noamnety]

3. k&r (nt)

[femmedem]

4. K & R. nt

[wryter2000]

5. Can they get any more disgusting?

Just once, I'd like to see someone punished for this sort of shit.

K&R