With time running short for action on the new farm bill, Senate Agriculture Committee chairwoman Debbie Stabenow said on Wednesday that the legislation has to consider public nutrition and agricultural programs equally. While lawmakers have disagreed for months on SNAP funding, higher crop subsidy spending, and climate mitigation, they hope to reach an agreement in the near term.
Even if they do, a vote on the farm bill might not occur until after the Nov. 5 general election. The top issue for Congress at the moment is funding the government past the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year. The House and Senate are scheduled to recess for October during the final weeks of campaigning.
“It’s critical we reaffirm our commitment to families, to our farmers, and to our rural communities,” said Stabenow during an Agriculture subcommittee hearing. “We need a farm bill that protects critical food assistance for families while also providing the support our farmers need to thrive … and get it done now.”
When asked about progress on the farm bill, a spokesman for House Agriculture Committee chairman Glenn Thompson said there was nothing to announce. Senior staffers from the House and Senate Agriculture committees continue to discuss elements of the bill. Typically, staffers resolve technical matters, while the Republican and Democratic leaders of the committees, known as the “four corners,” decide the major issues.
A one-year extension of the 2018 farm law expires on Sept. 30, though that has little practical effect until Jan. 1, when an underlying law would come into play and drive dairy support prices to high levels. Crop supports would become an issue with the arrival of next year’s planting season. The federal crop insurance program would continue to operate.
If the committee leaders agree on an outline of the new bill, staff workers could have text ready for consideration in November, Rep. David Scott, the senior Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee, said last week.
Republicans have proposed a 15 percent increase in so-called reference prices for field crops along with a $29 billion cut in SNAP and allowing climate mitigation funding to be used for conservation practices that do not reduce greenhouse gas emissions or sequester carbon. The Congressional Budget Office says the Republican-written House farm bill fails to pay for higher farm spending. Stabenow has suggested reference price increases of at least 5 percent, no cuts to SNAP, and keeping the “guardrails” in place for climate spending.