Senate’s Farm Bill Proposal

In a race against the clock, the Senate Agriculture Committee released its 1,400-page draft of the five-year farm bill on Monday. 

ICYMI, this comes only a few weeks before many agricultural safety net programs will start to expire.

Retiring Ag Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D, Mich.) urged moderate Republicans to support this draft. Without support, she said progress will be stalled into the new year.

The deetz: This draft increases the farm safety net and adds $20B to the Price Loss Coverage and Agricultural Risk Coverage programs. In a compromise with Republicans, Democrats agreed to let a five-year restriction on spending through the Commodity Credit Corporation pay for the increase. The CCC previously paid for trade bailouts and climate programs.

Democrats are standing their ground on nutrition spending and climate guardrails within conservation program funding. Stabenow said Republicans could cut those in the next Congress, but not while she’s in charge. 

Soundbite: “An eleventh hour partisan proposal released 415 days after the expiration of the current farm bill is insulting. America’s farmers deserve better.” — John Boozman, Senator (R-Ark.) on X

Meanwhile, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) isn’t happy either. The draft did not address California’s Prop 12, which has been a big challenge for pork producers—and consumers—in the state. The pork supply in California has shrunk, and prices have surged by more than 20%.

Where this goes: While the House released its farm bill draft in May, it still hasn’t come to a full vote. The current farm bill will likely get a short-term extension until a new one is approved.