In a camaraderie-filled meeting, Chairman Glenn Thompson said that everyone on the House Agriculture Committee was a member “of the farm team,” and his list of priorities for the committee put conventional agriculture and rural development first. “We certainly will have our work cut out for us as far as reauthorizing the farm bill,” he said on Wednesday.
The 2023 farm bill, which will set policy on issues from SNAP and land stewardship to farm subsidies and ag exports, could be the most expensive ever. Conservative Republicans tried to restrict food stamp spending and eligibility in the 2014 and 2018 farm bills.
“I’m asked almost daily what my priorities are for the 118th Congress,” said Thompson, a Pennsylvania Republican, in prepared remarks. “It’s simple. Ask a farmer. Ask a rancher. Ask a forester. Ask a consumer. Because their needs should be our priorities.
“This means supporting policies that put production agriculture first and aim to revitalize rural America,” he said. In farming circles, production agriculture is often used to describe commercial-scale operators using conventional practices to produce the bulk of U.S. crops and livestock. “This also means tackling rising inflation and input costs, energy costs, addressing the politicization of science, and keeping a watchful eye on excessive regulations and spending from this administration,” Thompson said.
He did not directly mention SNAP, the largest expenditure in the farm bill. SNAP cost $114 billion in fiscal 2022, double its cost before the pandemic.
Committee members approved by voice vote a nine-page list of topics for oversight and noted that most of the programs under its jurisdiction were part of the farm bill. “Farm bill preparation will begin with hearings, both in Washington and in the field,” it said. “Although dependent on timing, it is the committee’s goal to reauthorize the farm bill before it expires.”
Georgia Rep. David Scott, the senior Democrat on the committee, said he and Thompson had worked collegially last session, when he was chairman. “We are going to continue to do great work,” he said before hailing the return to the committee of Rep. Frank Lucas, the Oklahoma Republican who was chairman when the 2014 farm bill was enacted.
“Now we have got three chairmen,” said Scott, referring to himself, Thompson, and Lucas.
To watch a video of the hearing, click here.