Policy Updates and Issue News September 2026
Agriculture and Food
Farm bill clears Senate Ag Committee
The Senate Agriculture Committee passed the farm bill September 16 on a vote of 12-11 along party lines. The legislation now heads to the full chamber for consideration as farmers and ranchers continue to press for passage of critical ag policy. The bill stalled in committee 11-11 before the August recess, but Kentucky Senator McConnell's return from illness in mid-September allowed Republicans to muster the 12 votes for passage. Friction erupted among committee members who objected to keeping the bill closed to new amendments following the earlier August markup. Chairman Boozman (R-AR) stressed the need to move forward on the farm bill because time is running out to pass it in the current congressional session. He said additional amendments should be pursued on the Senate floor. Once the bill clears the Senate, it will go to a Senate-House conference committee to reach a compromise on the differences between the House and Senate versions. Both houses must then adopt the conference report.
President Trump creates beef firestorm
The administration raised the ire of beef and dairy producers when President Trump signed an executive order to allow an additional 300,000 metric tons of beef to be imported from September-November above current tariffs and quotas from Brazil and Argentina. The goal is to lower high retail ground beef prices by 25 percent. Producer reaction was swift as the White House and Congress were deluged with calls and social media posts of protests from producers.
Judge clears way for USDA reorganization
U.S. District Judge Susan Illston has allowed USDA’s reorganization plans to move forward, denying a request from federal employees and other interested parties for an injunction to block it. The reorganization involves moving employees from the Washington, D.C., area to regional hubs across the country, including Kansas City, Missouri; Raleigh, North Carolina; Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas; Salt Lake City, Utah; and Fort Collins, Colorado.
Health Care
National Grange touts rural healthcare on Capitol Hill
The Grange’s Chris Hamp and Burton Eller walked the halls of Congress in mid-September to present seven members of the House (Buchanan R-FL, Tonko D-NY, Hudson R-NC, Joyce R-PA, McCellan D-VA, Smith R-MO, Thompson D-CA) with the National Grange Rural Health Champion Award. The seven have been stalwarts with their focus on rural health disparities, particularly the Alzheimer’s Screening and Prevention Act (ASAP). The bipartisan bill would create a clear pathway for Medicare coverage of FDA-cleared blood tests that screen for Alzheimer’s disease and markers. Rural residents face a disproportionate and growing burden from Alzheimer’s disease driven by structural barriers that delay diagnosis, limit access to emerging therapies, and impose staggering costs on patients, caregivers, and rural health systems. While Hamp and Eller were on the Hill, the ASAP Act passed both the House Energy and Commerce and the House Ways and Means Committees.
National Grange testifies before FDA
National Grange President Christine Hamp presented testimony to the Food and Drug Administration’s Molecular and Clinical Genetics Panel of the Medical Devices Advisory Committee on September 23. The purpose of the panel is to provide independent expert advice and recommendations to FDA to help the agency make sound decisions. Hamp spoke in support of the premarket approval application for the Galleri test, which can detect dozens of cancers at an early stage with a simple blood draw. Hamp emphasized the Galleri test would mean, “Fewer cancers discovered later. More opportunities to treat them earlier. More options for patients. More birthdays. More anniversaries. More time with the people they love. Multi-cancer early detection tests can help lead us there.”
National Grange gives input to Senate 340B legislation
National Grange president Christine Hamp responded to a request from the Senate Committee on Health, Labor, and Pensions Committee Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-LA) for comments on his legislative draft for 340B program reform. She stressed that the National Grange did not want to repeal 340B, but that total reform of 340B was necessary to protect rural healthcare systems and rural hospitals. Large urban hospitals that dual-register as a rural site are siphoning program funds away from authentic rural facilities. In 2018, 109 hospitals were dually classified; in just five years, that number rose to 521 in 2023. Annual spending on 340B drugs was $6.6 billion in 2010. By 2025, the amount had exploded to over $100 billion because of large urban hospital participation. Hamp urged Chairman Cassidy to include language in his legislation to close the dual-classification loophole so resources can reach the rural patients and communities the 340B program was intended to serve.
Telecommunications
Much of rural America is still waiting for broadband
According to USTelecom, broadband providers deployed $92.6 billion last year to expand, upgrade, and modernize the nation’s communications infrastructure. Yet much of the rural countryside is still waiting for reliable internet, and they’re asking when that investment will reach them. The answer too often depends on how long it takes to issue required government permits. In too many cases, that may mean months, if not years. The broadband industry is pushing modern broadband networks, led by high-capacity fiber and wireless, deeper into rural communities. But too many projects face months or years of permitting delays before construction can begin. Congress may need to step in to make the approval process faster and more predictable, set more reasonable timelines for decisions, tie fees to the actual cost of reviewing applications, and reduce duplicative efforts. The National Grange is staying in close contact with several members of Congress and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) on shortening permitting reform.
Of Interest
Growing concerns about data centers
As data centers break ground in communities across the country, more residents are concerned about the electrical power, water, noise, and environmental impact. A recent survey by The Associated Press NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that roughly one quarter of U.S. adults surveyed said data centers are “extremely” or “very” beneficial when it comes to technological advancement. However, only two in ten say the same about job creation, and a quarter of respondents say data centers are not beneficial. These survey results come as a growing number of jurisdictions are placing moratoriums on data center growth.
Perspectives on Family
“Family is not an important thing, it is the only thing.” ~ Michael J. Fox
“I don’t think quantity time is as special as quality time with your family.” ~ Reba McEntire
“Peace in society depends upon peace in the family.” ~ Saint Augustine
“You don’t choose your family. They are God’s gift to you, as you are to them.” ~ Desmond Tutu
“In family life, love is the oil that greases friction, the cement that binds closer together, and the music that brings harmony.” ~ Friedrich Nietzsche