Pigford II Funding Agreement Clears House
WASHINGTON -- Senator Chuck Grassley praised the quick action of the House of Representatives after it passed legislation to fund the Pigford II settlement. The Claims Resolution Act of 2010 resolves claims against the government related to the Cobell class action lawsuit, the Pigford class action lawsuit, as well as tribal water rights claims for the White Mountain Apache, Crow, Taos Pueblo, and Aamodt Tribes. The legislation is fully paid for, and contains additional safeguards to better fight fraud in the program. The bill cleared the Senate on November 19.
"When I first started working on this issue, I had hoped to resolve these civil rights issues through the administrative process. I knew that if we had to pass legislation, it would take years," Grassley said. "As we've seen, the legislative process did take years, but these farmers who were wronged by our own federal government agency will now, once President Obama signs the bill, finally be able to plead their case in front of a neutral party and be judged on the merits."
Grassley led the effort to ensure fair treatment for African American farmers who were denied the opportunity have their case heard for the Pigford v. Glickman settlement, which ended a discrimination lawsuit between African American farmers and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Approximately 75,000 black farmers filed their claims of discrimination through the Pigford consent decree process past the deadline for their claims to be evaluated on the merits. As a result, thousands of victims of discrimination continue to be denied an opportunity even to have their claims heard.
Grassley worked to put in place a process where these African American farmers can have the opportunity to plead their case based on the merits. He introduced legislation in 2007 and pressed for it to be included in the 2008 farm bill.
The Pigford II settlement includes several substantial changes from Pigford I in order to better fight fraud. Changes have been made to the settlement agreement that will enhance the Department's ability to fight fraud including requiring adjudicators to be a truly neutral party; allowing that neutral adjudicator to ask the claimant for additional documentation if he or she suspects any fraud; requiring the claimants' attorneys to certify that there is evidentiary support for the claims; and requiring the Office of Inspector General and the Government Accountability Office to evaluate the Department's internal controls and audit the process in adjudicating the claims.
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