Hello,

I wanted to share with you an update on what I’ve been working on recently and what it means for Kansans:

Farm Bill Field Hearing Coming to Kansas

As Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, I’m pleased to announce the next Farm Bill hearing will be held right in the heart of farm country in Wichita on August 25. At this hearing, we will gain insight and suggestions from our Kansas farm organizations, commodity groups and individual producers. We’ll announce a list of witnesses in the coming days.

Their perspective on the direction of the next Farm Bill is critical to the committee’s work in drafting policies that make sense in farm country and good policy for rural America. Nothing like sitting on the wagon tongue and visiting with farmers and ranchers. We’ll do just that in August in Wichita.

Touring Missouri River Flood Areas

Last weekend I headed to Kansas to tour the flooding Missouri River area with Governor Sam Brownback. We stopped by Doniphan and Atchison Counties to see how our local emergency responders are handling the flooding.

The view from both the ground and air were stunning. We're told that so far the levees are holding, and being watched around the clock. The governor stressed that the flood water will be with us for months and we must maintain a high level of vigilance.

Once this crisis has passed, I fully intend to take a good, hard look at the legislation that governs USACE policy. After all, the dams in the Dakotas and Nebraska were built by your tax dollars for the primary purpose of flood control.

I did my best to reassure the people in these areas that their situation is of utmost importance to me and I am watching carefully every day. We have much to monitor, including the long-term strength of the levees, as well as what Mother Nature has in store for us.

Fighting Unnecessary Regulations

Recently, I testified before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee on a bill I introduced to end redundant, burdensome, job-killing regulations that are threatening America's businesses.

As I travel across my home state, I have heard from Kansan after Kansan who find themselves weighed down by the burden of too many regulations, even to the point that these regulations threaten the future of their businesses. President Obama has made it his 'mission to root out regulations that conflict, that are not worth the cost, or that are just plain dumb.’ I agree. We need to eliminate more of the ‘just plain dumb’ in government and I would encourage the administration and my colleagues to start by enacting my legislation I introduced earlier this year. It’s called the Regulatory Responsibility for our Economy Act, S. 358, which targets federal government regulations to ensure they don’t harm the economy.

I was honored to share my views on the matter with my colleagues on the committee. You can click here to watch my opening testimony at the hearing.

Defending the Livestock Industry

The center of America’s dinner plate was the major focus of a recent Senate Agriculture Committee hearing. The committee focused on the state of livestock in America and the nearly 900,000 meat producers who make up our country’s more than $100 billion livestock industry.

The government is attacking the multi-billion dollar livestock industry with too many regulations, which will have far reaching implications on the economy worldwide. The livestock sector is a driver of the agricultural economy and is also a major reason agriculture has had substantial successes in the export market. If the president plans to double exports, this segment of agriculture stands ready to deliver.

During the hearing, I called into question a major rule related to livestock, known as GIPSA, saying the administration went forward in direct opposition to Congressional actions in regards to GIPSA. As a result, we are looking at a proposed rule that is undoubtedly significant in its economic impact and which threatens to undo years of livestock marketing arrangements that have benefited both livestock producers and consumers.

At a time when many talk about how agriculture is going to help lead the rebound for our economic recovery, it makes no sense to me why we would try to hamstring this industry, and take away marketing tools that will have far reaching implications in both the domestic and international marketplace.

Click here to watch my entire opening remarks.

Protecting Privacy Rights

The Federal Aviation Administration recently submitted a proposal to eliminate privacy protections for general aviation pilots, allowing the public to access their aircraft movements in real-time. It could become a reality in August should the Obama Administration have its way of ending the Block Aircraft Registration Request (BARR) program.

The BARR program allows citizens and companies to “opt out” of having their aircraft movements tracked by anyone, anywhere in the world, who has an Internet connection, other than the Department of Homeland Security and other law enforcement agencies.

I find it troubling that the Obama administration would associate removing the BARR program with the need for greater transparency. Transparency has everything to do with citizens being able to see how the government carries out its business, not the other way around. I doubt any Kansan would associate allowing strangers to stalk the movements of private individuals as transparency.

For this reason, I along with a bi-partisan group of 25 other senators sent a letter to Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood expressing our strong opposition to this blatant violation of citizens’ right to privacy and demanding that he reconsider his decision.

I take very seriously my duty as a U.S. Senator to uphold and defend the U.S. Constitution, and I will continue to fight against any actions by the federal government that infringe upon the rights of my fellow Americans. Everyone has the right to travel and conduct business without having to worry about who is spying on them.

Check Senator Roberts’ Website, YouTube and Facebook Sites for Updates

You can visit my YouTube site for more information on what’s happening in Washington, D.C. and Kansas by visiting www.youtube.com/SenPatRoberts. It's a great place to find speeches and debates on the Senate floor, press conferences, interviews and Senate hearings. You can also stay updated on all these happenings on my Facebook and Twitter sites.

If you wish to contact me about an issue or want more information, please visit my website, roberts.senate.gov.