Great Falls – The US Senate voted 50-38 today in support of the Trade Promotion Authority bill that was passed by the House last week. The Montana Grain Growers Association thanks Senator Steve Daines and Representative Ryan Zinke for their support and for their commitment to expanding trade opportunities for Montana grain producers.
MGGA Executive Vice President Lola Raska said, “We look forward to President Obama signing the bill and anticipate that the remaining negotiating items of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a trade agreement that encompasses our most important foreign customers, can then be finalized and released to the public for review.”
TPA requires that the text of a trade agreement must be made public for 60 days before the president can sign it. After that it will take another two or three months for analysis to be completed before going to Congress for a vote.
Raska added, “As key players in Montana’s leading industry, our farmers grow a significant quantity of high quality grain and our markets depend on the foreign consumers who live outside our borders.”
Montana is America’s third leading exporter of wheat and ranks among the top 10 exporters of miscellaneous grains, dry peas and beans, and hay.
Source: Montana Grain Growers Association
