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calamities.
In addition, the federal government paid out $4 billion in 1988 in special disaster relief to farmers, primarily because of that summer’s drought. More than $13 million in disaster relief was paid to Virginia farmers in 1988, according to the state Agricultural Conservation and Stabilization Service office.
Those price tags — and the fact that federal crop insurance has seen scanty participation from farmers — made the FCIC program a glaring target in President George Bush’s hunt to cut costs and bring the deficit down, Mr. Pease said.
But the move still surprised some in the agricultural industry. They say they were expecting federal crop insurance tc be overhauled, not done away with. “Properly managed and focused, I think crop insurance is a better alternative than disaster assistance,” said Eber C. Downes Jr., a Capeville, Va., farmer and member of a national committee appointed by the president to study and report on the future of agriculture policies.
In fact, that committee recommended a re-vam^mg if the FCIC
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