Can Farmers Expect Additional Assistance In 2026?

No additional farm aid is expected next year despite earlier suggestions by President Trump and others that extra help is possible, given billions in continuing farm losses.  Undersecretary for Farm Production and Conservation Richard Fordyce said his agency is not considering adding to the $12 billion in farm aid announced recently, despite $44 billion in farm losses this year.  That, even as President Trump suggested openness to more aid and Senate Ag Chair John Boozman offered his help

“So, we look forward to helping you if we need some additional help, looking to Congress," Boozman said recently.  "We’ll be there for you, sir.

Undersecretary Fordyce told Reuters that he doesn’t know what next year will bring, but “at this point, we feel like we’ve kind of done what we can do.”  That’s because of budget limits and the fact that revenue from President Trump’s tariffs are now on the line at the Supreme Court.

“We have other methods, but they’re not as powerful, not as quick," Trump said.  "So, it’s a very important thing…the decision of the Supreme Court is a very important thing.  We can do it other ways, but it’s slow, and it’s cumbersome, and it doesn’t have the power, it doesn’t have the national security power.”

USDA also hoped to release, this week, the payment rate by crop per acre for the announced aid, with actual payments made by February 28th.  Payments will be based on what producers planted and reported to the FSA in 2025, with aid serving as a “bridge” to new, higher reference prices next year.

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