2018 Farm Bill

Across rural America, farmers, regardless of commodity, are sending a clear message to Congress: pass a five-year farm bill now, before it’s too late.   Congress hasn’t updated the farm bill since 2018.  Instead, it’s patched together a pair of year-long extensions that do not address the current economic realities of farming in the U.S.  Fourth-generation Minnesota ...

Trade and tariffs have controlled much of the conversation across the farming community and in D.C.  But several commodity groups are trying to remind everyone that the Farm Bill is an issue that still needs to be addressed.  Samantha Parrott, Executive Director of the Snake River Sugarbeet Growers Association says the Farm Bill is not just a want for growers, but a need.   “Sugar is ...

With a five-year Farm Bill now two years overdue, sugarbeet and sugarcane farmers from across the country were in Washington, DC, recently to tell Congress they need a new Farm Bill as soon as possible.  This is Gus Hasbargen’s first time participating in the annual fly-in meetings organized by the American Sugar Alliance.  He said ...

House Ag Chair G.T. Thompson renewed his calls this week for Farm Bill SNAP reforms that scuttled last year’s Farm Bill effort.  That came during a debate on a narrowly-passed House budget that the Senate must still consider.   Thomps...

It wasn’t done in 2023; It wasn’t addressed in 2024.  The hope is that Congress will take on the issue of crafting an updated Farm Bill within the first couple of months of 2025.  Oregon Department of Agriculture Director Lisa Charpilloz Hanson said the Farm Bill is so important for producers across Oregon, not just for crop insurance, but to address the pressing issues facing the Ag industry.   &

Republicans representing rural districts say they are confident that a Farm Bill will be passed within the first couple months of the year.  So, why is the GOP so confident they will replace the 2018 Farm Bill well ahead of the September deadline?  Re...

As farm country looks ahead to 2025, what are the thoughts and feelings?  Farmers typically are an optimistic bunch, but many are in the mood for change, according to National Farmers Union president Rob Larew.  And he says nowhere is that more evident than Donald Trump’s return to the White House.   “They want relie...

Congress passed a year-end bill that includes a continuing resolution extending current levels of federal funding until March, including an extension of the 2018 Farm Bill.  However, the National Association of Conservation Districts was disappointed the package didn’t include Inflation Reduction Act conservation funding.   "The f...

The third time was the charm, as the House and then the Senate passed stopgap funding legislation just prior to Friday’s deadline to avert a government shutdown.  Plan “C” approved late last week included farm and disaster aid.  Farm groups, led by the A...

Baring a complete change in the mentality in D.C., the passage of a new Farm Bill before the 118th Congress comes to an end looks very unlikely.  Dan Newhouse, Chair of the Congressional Western Caucus, said he is incredibly disappointed that despite having good legislation to vote on, lawmakers couldn’t get a new Farm Bill across the finish line this year.   “The a...