UPDATE 1-Congress, W. House seen $4 bln apart on farm law
(Adds Congress to vote on one-month extension; paragraphs 3-4, 9, 12-13)
WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - Congress and the Bush administration are $4 billion apart on funding for the new U.S. farm law and where to spend the $10 billion increase, such as a standby disaster program, said two Senate chairmen on Tuesday.
Congress was not expected to complete work on the farm law until mid-April, six months behind schedule. Negotiators hope to agree on a farm bill "framework" on funding, allocation of money and overall policy by week's end.
Lawmakers could act as early as Wednesday to extend parts of the 2002 farm law until April 18, to allow more time to work out a final version of the new law.
Leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees said there was no agreement yet on crop subsidy rates, stricter payment limits on crop subsidies or "revenue protection" for farmers against poor yields as well as low prices.
There were signs the administration may accept creation of an ever-ready disaster program costing $4 billion to $5 billion. It is a priority of senators from the northern Plains, who feel the government is slow to act when crops fail.
Farm bills, written every few years, are omnibus legislation covering crop subsidy, public nutrition, land stewardship, export, rural development and biofuel programs. Nutrition will get two-thirds of the money in the new law.
"There is still a gap between what we need and what we've agreed to," said Senate Budget Committee chairman Kent Conrad, North Dakota Democrat, during a session with soybean growers.
He placed the gap at around $4 billion both on how to pay for the bill and for how much larger are proposals for outlays compared to the target of an increase of $10 billion over 10 years.
Senate Agriculture Committee chairman Tom Harkin, Iowa Democrat, also said there was a $4 billion gap between funding and spending proposals. "It's not insurmountable," he said.
"We've gotten a lot of resistance on a permanent disaster program," said Conrad, but the administration took part in discussions this week of how to craft a program.
"They seem to be working with us on it," said House Agriculture Committee chairman Collin Peterson, Minnesota Democrat.
Democratic leaders in Congress probably will have to decide whether the farm bill will include five dozen tax provisions, dealing for the most part with biofuels, said Harkin.
Peterson said he opposed a Senate proposal to offer tax credits instead of rental payments for some land enrolled in the Conservation and Wetland reserves. Only wealthy people would use the credits, he said, and they could encourage land purchases as a way to get the credits and reduce tax bills.
The House and Senate passed bills last year that would spend far more than the $10 billion increase now on the table. As a result, lawmakers must trim back on outlays.
"Everybody has to give a little ground," said Conrad.
Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley told reporters he would press for more stringent subsidy rules in the farm bill. The Senate was debating an annual budget resolution that included Grassley's "hard" cap of $250,000 a year per farmer in subsidies. (Editing by David Gregorio)
