POLICY UPDATES/ISSUE NEWS

Agriculture and Food Dueling plans for more farmer aid Ranking Democrat Angie Craig (MN) and several of her colleagues on the House Agriculture Committee plan to introduce sweeping legislation that would provide another $17 billion in economic relief to financially strained farmers, delay cost changes in SNAP food aid, and…

Agriculture and Food “Bridge” payments coming to row crop farmers The Trump administration will provide $12 billion in financial support early next year to farmers who grow row crops. The first $11 billion is scheduled to be distributed by the end of February 2026. The Farmer Bridge Assistance program payments…

Washington Overview The government shutdown ended on November 12, with a continuing resolution to fund the government through January 21, 2026. The Senate voted 60-40 in favor of the stopgap funding bill, with eight Democrats voting in favor and one Republican opposing the measure. The House then voted 222-209 to…

Agriculture and Food Farm aid package remains elusive Past news reports have continued to stress that markets for soybeans, corn, wheat, and sorghum are in the tank. Tariffs have caused the loss of traditional foreign buyers, and tariffs have caused the prices on imported farm supplies to skyrocket. President Trump…

Agriculture and Food Screwworm scare closer than ever  Agriculture producers, wildlife agencies, and pet owners are more concerned than ever after a case of New World screwworm has been confirmed less than 70 miles south of the Texas border in Mexico. The previous northernmost case detection was 370 miles farther…

Agriculture and Food Congress needs to pass a “skinny “farm bill The President signed the Big Beautiful Bill Act into law on July 4. It included several big-ticket farm bill items such as support for commodity programs, crop insurance, supplemental nutrition assistance (SNAP), dairy, sugar, and biofuels. However, there are…

Agriculture and Food Farm Bill Many farm bill provisions were included in the budget reconciliation bill that the President signed into law on July 4. See “What’s in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act for Farmers and Ranchers” in this newsletter. “Skinny” farm bill is next Although several major sections…

Agriculture and Food Farm bill provisions hit a snag Commodity price support and nutrition assistance sections of the farm bill have been included in the budget reconciliation package moving through Congress. Actions by both the House and Senate Agriculture Committees would make massive cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program…

Agriculture and Food Farm bill charts new territory The House Agriculture Committee finished a marathon committee markup session to include parts of the farm bill funding in the fiscal 2025 budget reconciliation process. That’s a break from tradition whereby the farm bill is normally adopted as a stand-alone bill. The…