By Christopher Doering

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House threatened on Wednesday to veto a broad agriculture law being drafted in Congress, which the administration said misses a major chance to overhaul U.S. farm policy in dire need of reform.

The Bush administration has argued that the House Agriculture Committee’s plan for the 2007 farm bill — which will set subsidy, biofuels, rural development, conservation and nutrition spending for five years — increases taxes unnecessarily and uses accounting tricks to pay for programs.

“Myself, and the president’s entire team of senior advisors, will recommend that he veto the bill if it is adopted in its current form,” Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns told reporters. “There are serious problems with the way this (House) bill was put together.”

The farm bill package, passed last week under the leadership of committee Chairman Rep. Collin Peterson, would deny subsidies to people with an adjusted gross income above $1 million, which Johanns said would only be about 3,000 people. It also would require payments to be tracked to an individual.

The Bush administration has expressed concern that the House falls short on priorities such as renewable energy and rural development. It also said the bill does not sufficiently limit eligibility for government farm supports.

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