June 29, 2018
Both the House and Senate have passed their versions of the farm bill, well ahead of the Sept. 30 expiration of the current bill. There’s work to do yet as there are differences between the bills, primarily in regard to the food stamp program, farm subsidy caps and conservation initiatives. The bill passed the Senate 86-11. The House passed their bill on a party-line vote, 213-211.
Related: Farm bill passes House
Related: Senate passes farm bill
Here’s what farm groups are saying in reaction to the Senate passage of the bill on June 28:
“Of course, no bill is ever perfect, but this bipartisan effort gives us a solid framework for progress,” said American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. “We do have concerns about some of the provisions that were added to the bill that make it harder for farmers to manage risk, but we are confident that those issues can be satisfactorily addressed by the House/Senate conference committee. We look forward to working with conferees from both houses to get the best possible farm bill done for rural America.”
“We are appreciative of the Senate’s work on this bill and are pleased by its passage,” said National Farmers Union Senior Vice President of Public Policy and Communications Rob Larew. “At a time of great financial stress, family farmers and ranchers are in need of some economic certainty. The Senate’s version of the Farm Bill includes encouraging provisions that strengthen the farm safety net, promote farm sustainability, and ensure access to fair and diverse markets, all of which would provide essential security.”
From the bankers
“The reauthorization of this bill will provide critical risk management tools and stability for our nation’s farmers and ranchers and the 2,000 farm banks that serve them every day,” said Rob Nichols, American Bankers Association president and CEO. “We are particularly pleased that banks and their customers will continue to have access to crop insurance and USDA guaranteed loan programs. Ag bankers use these programs to make loans and manage risk, so they can serve the needs of their customers even in down times. We are also pleased that senators included a six-month extension of the National Flood Insurance Program in the bill. While work remains to achieve long term reauthorization and reform of the NFIP, it is essential for borrowers across the nation that the program not lapse.”
Sustainable and organic agriculture
The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition praised the Senate bill for its inclusion of several initiatives including:
Increased investments in farm-to-fork initiatives
Investments in beginning and socially disadvantaged farmer programs.
Improvements to federal conservation programs.
Inclusion of Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley’s “actively engage in farming” amendment.
They are disappointed Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin’s amendment to reduce crop insurance premiums to the wealthiest farming operations failed.
The Organic Trade Association highlighted its priorities that are included in the Senate bill:
Essential tools and funding for the improved oversight of trade to ensure the integrity of organic throughout the global supply chain;
The largest increase in funding for the flagship Organic Research and Extensive Initiative (OREI) program in over a decade to achieve stable, baseline mandatory funding for the program. The Senate Farm Bill increases OREI funding from its current $20 million per year to $50 million per year by 2023;
Funding for the organic certification cost-share program that helps to incentivize small and beginning farmers to transition to organic by relieving some of the associated costs with the annual organic certification fees;
Full funding for the Organic Data Initiative, USDA’s organic data collection program that provides accurate market and production information for the organic industry.
Source: AFBF, NFU, ABA, NSAC, OTA
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