The Nebraska-based Center for Rural Affairs says the 2018 farm bill should improve USDA land stewardship programs, expand programs for rural economic development and beginning farmers, and target crop insurance toward small and medium-sized farms. “We support a $50,000 cap on crop insurance premiums,” the group said.
A $50,000 cap would apply to the largest 2.5 percent of farms, “helping to level the playing field. … Along with reforms to expand access and enhance conservation, we can make crop insurance work in alignment with our values and priorities,” said the organization. Its recommended crop insurance reforms include eliminating premium subsidies for policies with the Harvest Price Option, “which allows farmers to hedge against future prices at the taxpayers’ expense.”
Shrugging off a decision by the Trump administration, the Center for Rural Affairs also said the 2018 farm bill should require the USDA to finalize the so-called GIPSA rule, which would make it easier for livestock producers to show unfair treatment by meat processors. It also called for restoration of the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration as an independent agency. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, as part of the USDA reorganization, eliminated GIPSA and folded its duties into the Agricultural Marketing Service.
To read the Center’s six-page farm bill platform, click here.