On Thursday, in a test of partisan resolve, the Democratic-controlled House passed, on a nearly party-line vote of 243-180, a funding bill to reopen the USDA and FDA. With the exception of essential work such as meat inspection, both agencies have been shuttered since late December by the partial government shutdown. It was the third of four bills that House Democrats will put to a vote this week to try to break the funding stalemate with President Trump and that Republicans say will die in the GOP-run Senate.
“You call it a charade. We call it governing,” said Democrat Jimmy Panetta of California in a retort that closed an hour of debate on the bill. Republican Paul Mitchell of Michigan said the bill was offered in bad faith because the real issue in the shutdown is Trump’s demand for $5.7 billion for a wall along the border with Mexico. “This bill is dead on arrival” in the Senate, he said. Added Republican Kay Granger of Texas, “As the president has said, he will not sign this bill into law.”
The USDA-FDA funding bill, which covers the rest of this fiscal year, is a near duplicate of the $145-billion appropriations bill passed last fall by the Senate. It includes provisions to bar horse slaughter for human consumption and to require the FDA to create special labels before GMO salmon can be sold to consumers. Democrats emphasized the bill would assure that SNAP recipients will receive their benefits on time. The Trump administration has guaranteed benefits for February through a one-time funding loophole.
“There is no guarantee for March. Families may be left with nothing,” said Rep. Barbara Lee, Democrat of California.
Ten Republicans voted for the USDA-FDA bill. No Democrats voted against it. Democrats hold a 235-199 majority in the House, and Republicans control the Senate, 53-47. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he will not call a vote on funding legislation unless he is sure Trump will sign it.
While food stamps have been the headline USDA issue during the shutdown, a wide range of programs are affected. Rural housing and rural development grants and loans are unavailable. Key reports on crop production have been delayed with the planting season at hand. Trump tariff payments cannot be processed, and the USDA cannot verify if China is buying U.S. farm exports, supposedly an accompaniment to trade talks between the two countries.
The Food Marketing Institute, a trade group for grocers, said that more than 2,500 food retailers are unable to make SNAP sales because their licenses were not renewed before the shutdown started, reported the Washington Post.
“I am deeply concerned that the shutdown is having a devastating impact on USDA’s operations, hurting many American farmers and families,” said Sen. Debbie Stabenow, the senior Democrat on the Senate Agriculture Committee, in a letter to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue. Implementation of the 2018 farm law is stalled, she said. “I am also concerned with the impact of this shutdown on American families who receive food assistance.”
North Dakota Sen. John Hoeven asked Perdue to declare the USDA’s loan programs for farmers to be essential operations, so that USDA employees can resume work on them. “With the closure of [Farm Service Agency] county and state offices, there is concern that producers will not have access to important loan programs that provide them with the necessary cash flow to operate,” said Hoeven, the Republican who chairs the Senate Appropriations subcommittee overseeing the USDA and FDA.
The House passed the USDA-FDA bill moments after a 244-180 vote for a Housing-Transportation appropriations bill. “The bipartisan bills that House Democrats passed today alleviate some … uncertainty by ensuring families receive SNAP benefits and tenants don’t face eviction,” said House Appropriations chairwoman Nita Lowey of New York.
For an Appropriations Committee summary of the bills and links to the legislative text, click here.