Spilled milk in State House Cartel: Senate should hold firm against resurrected plan that would raise milk prices in Maryland.

IN POLITICAL Annapolis, there is life after death.

Just weeks ago, a Senate committee killed a bill that would give farmers the power to fix milk prices through state membership in a regional consortium.

But dairy farmers have gained House backing to resurrect that plan and allow Maryland to join this cartel, which raised milk prices about 20 cents a gallon in large New England cities after it started operating last summer.

The bill remains well intentioned but unrealistic. It won't stem the decline in dairy farms, which is happening nationwide because of more productive cows and industry consolidation.

The bill might help large milk producers, but not small dairy farmers. And it will prove costly to urban and suburban consumers.

Maryland's milk prices would be set by a cartel in which this state would be a very minor player. The cartel would have the power to raise prices as it sees fit, and anyone who buys milk would be forced to pay -- parents of young children, the poor, nursing homes, hospitals, state prisons.

It is an attempt to return to price controls in agricultural commodities -- the reverse of what Washington has been trying to do. Despite the governor's personal intervention, senators should hold firm to their sensible rejection of this proposal, which harms consumers.

Instead, they should press state officials to seek other ways to address the plight of dairy farmers. Joining an OPEC-style cartel to fix milk prices is not the answer.

Pub Date: 4/02/98