History
The Farm Bill, officially named the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, is approaching the end of its five-year term and is set to expire on Sept. 30. As a result, Congress is currently in the process of drafting new legislation.
The Farm Bill is a crucial piece of legislation that is enacted every five years to address evolving economic circumstances and cater to the requirements of the agricultural sector. The development of these bills, which have significant consequences, falls under the responsibility of the Senate and House Committees on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
The 2018 Farm Bill
The 2018 Farm Bill allocated $428.3 billion to various USDA programs and policies related to food and agriculture, with a focus on 12 different titles. According to the USDA’s Economic Research Service, 75 percent of the funding is allocated to mandatory nutrition programs, leaving the remaining 25% for the other 11 titles.
The 12 titles in the bill:
Commodities and Disasters
Conservation
Trade
Nutrition
Credit
Rural Development
Research
Forestry
Energy
Horticulture
Crop Insurance
Misc
From a recent study, the 12 farm bill titles in 2022 contributed to over 43 million jobs, $2.3 trillion in wages, $718 billion in tax revenue, $183 billion in exports, and $7.4 trillion in economic activity. As the House and Senate committees work on drafting the new 2023 Farm Bill, legislators and stakeholders are holding hearings, open letters, and public forums to share their priorities.
The 2023 Farm Bill Impact
Nutrition programs such as SNAP, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, provide critical assistance and monthly grocery benefits to nearly 40 million low-income individuals and remains a key focus for the 2023 Farm Bill.
“Most of the farm bill affects eaters, not farmers,” said Scott Faber, senior vice president for government affairs at Environmental Working Group, one of the advocacy groups that tracks farm bill spending.
Commodity programs and crop insurance continue to be a top priority for stake holders. This year, California alone has experienced crop damage of upwards of $40 billion dollars from severe weather patterns. Crop insurance is a crucial risk management tool that producers across the country need in order to continue providing food for the world.
The influence of the farm bill is substantial, which is why the input of stakeholders is crucial to creating policies and investments that cater to the needs of producers, large and small, rural communities, and consumers.
The current farm bill is set to expire at the end of September 2023, which creates a deadline for Congress to reauthorize a new bill before then. Staff from the House and Senate Agriculture committees said they plan to hold more hearings on each title of the bill in the coming months, with the hopes of voting on a final bill well in advance of the deadline.
But, with the last several farm bill cycles, Congress has not met those deadlines and usually passed temporary extensions to keep programs running while they continued to negotiate until the end of the calendar year.
If you are interested in having input on the 2023 Farm Bill, send your feedback to the House and Senate Agriculture Committees.
