Farm BIll

The historically bipartisan Farm Bill turned political this week as majority Ag Republicans turned back every Democratic amendment and sent their Farm Bill budget to the House on a party-line vote.  It wasn’t just SNAP spending reforms Democrats went after, but Trump actions like tariffs, staff cuts, and USDA grant freezes.   “From ...

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 ...

At a press conference on Capitol Hill last week, House Ag Committee Democrats railed against Republican plans to cut spending on food aid in SNAP.  The Democrats emphasized that funding for SNAP supports hungry families as well as farmers, grocery workers, truckers, and food manufacturers.    ...

House leaders are delaying a planned Agriculture Committee markup that was tentatively set for this week as big issues remain for the GOP’s massive domestic policy bill, according to two Republicans granted anonymity to relay the decision ahead of an official announcement.   P...

Conversations about the Farm Bill have been, in many ways, put on the back burner in Washington D.C.  Attention has focused more on tariffs, ag labor and immigration reform.  But Michelle Hennings, Executive Director of the Washington Association of Wheat Growers says its vital that lawmakers focus on passing an update Farm Bill as soon as possible.  She noted not onl...

Lawmakers are sending signals that a new Farm Bill isn’t certain in 2025.   Reports say Republican lawmakers are considering adding Biden-era conservation programs into their party-line megabill that may have otherwise been in a separate reauthorization of federal farm programs.  Politico...

The clock on 2025 is ticking, and there are still no signs of Congress getting closer to a new Farm Bill.  Central Washington’s Dan Newhouse said it’s not easy, but he’s still confident an updated Bill will get done at some point.   “This is not the f...

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 ...

The forecast for farming in 2025 and beyond is not a good one, according to one of the country's leading ag economists.  Dr. Joe Outlaw is a professor and extension economist at Texas A&M University, and his most recent survey of farmers doesn't look promising,   “That outlook is something we present to Washington every year, and this is the worst one we've ever taken in and shown them. And t

Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins says farmers and ranchers need a new five-year Farm Bill in 2025.   " has failed now to get through Congress the last two times under the Biden administration, and it is a very, very big priority of mine," Rollins said last week.  ...