GENERAL FARM PROGRAM • 1117 



These figurevS show that farm people have a long way to go to achieve parity in 

 living standards. It is well known that rural people are generally at a disad- 

 vantage in housing and house conveniences, in health and educational facilities, 

 despite the improvements of recent j^ears. After all, "money makes the mule 

 to go," and the money just isn't there to bring the benefits of twentieth century 

 American living standards to the majority of farm people. 



Just TO give 3'ou a simple illustration, the Census Bureau found that in April 

 1947, out of 71^ million farm dwellings, only lU million had both a private bath 

 and a private flush toilet. Taking all the criteria of good housing listed by the 

 Census Bureau — electric lighting and running water; flush toilet, bathtub or 

 shower; and installed cooking facilities for exclusive use of the occupants — it was 

 found that only 19 percent of farm dwellings had all these conveniences which 

 most of us consider essential for decent living, whereas 80 percent of city dwellings 

 were so equipped (Department of Commerce, Current Population Reports, Hous- 

 ing, Series P-70, No. 1, October 29, 1947). 



There is certainly no room for complacenc.v in view of such figures as these. 

 The farm people have the same right as city p?ople to the best standard of living 

 our Nation is capabb of providing, and it should be a national objective to assure 

 them adequate levels of income to obtain such a standard of living. 



FARMEE.S CAUGHT IN SQUEEZE OF HIGH COSTS AND FALLING PRICES 



Farmers are now caught in the squeeze of falling prices for their products and 

 fixed high costs for the products used in production and family living. Since 

 July 1948, prices received by farmers have fallen 14 percent, while prices paid 

 by farmers have declined only 2 percent. The parity ratio — prices received 

 divided by prices paid — has declined from 120 percent of the 1909-14 average to 

 106 percent (April 1949). 



URGENT NEED FOR PRICE AND INCOME SUPPORTS 



It is high time to repair the damage done by the Eightieth Congress, and to 

 take further steps to meet> the new critical situation. In the face of a threatening 

 fall in agricultural income, it is urgent that the general principles of Secretary 

 Brannan's farm program, aimounced April 7, 1949, be put into effect. We 

 strongly endorse those principles, as they restate the fundamental thesis that 

 decent incomes for farm families and expanded food consumption by city families 

 go hand in hand. 



Without pretending to be expert in the technicalities of the Brannan program, 

 we would urge a strengthening of its machinery to insure the realization of its 

 principles. First, decent incomes must be assured for all farmers, not just big 

 farmers; this means the income ceiling for parity payments must be set much 

 lower than the $25,000 figure originally suggested. According to the last census 

 of agriculture, only 5 percent of farms produced more than .$10,000 worth of 

 products (Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1948, p. 626); obviously, 

 $25,000 is far too high a ceihng if the program is to aid small, family farms. Small 

 farms should not be subject to the same acreage and crop reduction restrictions 

 as lar^e farms; else the basic objective of raising incomes on these farms will be 

 defeated. Small farms will also need vastly expanded aid along the lines of the 

 old Farm Security Administration, including purchase and development loans, 

 a medical care program, etc. 



Secondly the Brannan program must be supplemented by measures to expand 

 consumption of farm products, which is the only economically sound and morally 

 decent answer to the problem of farm surpluses. There must be no more burning 

 of wheat, oranges, etc. This means there must be some way to regulate prices 

 and profits of processing corporations and other middlemen — meat packers, 

 dairy products manufacturers, flour millers, cotton ginners, chain stores, etc. — 

 so that lower costs and prices at the farm level are passed on in full to consumers. 

 This means also that there must be vast expansion of Federal aid to consumption 

 in the form of the school-lunch program and a revived food-stamp plan for low- 

 income consumers. 



Without these supplements to the Brannan program, there is grave danger of 

 its succumbing to the weaknesses of the old AAA program, which did nothing to 

 expand city consumption, while it concentrated price-support benefits in the 



