The U.S. Farm Bill is an important piece of legislation focused on America’s food and agricultural systems with focus on nutrition, insurance, conservation, land access, and more. The bill originated in the 1930’s as part of Roosevelt’s New Deal legislation as a response to the Great Depression and Dust Bowl. The original goals of the Farm Bill were to keep food prices fair for farmers and consumers, to ensure adequate food supply, and to protect and sustain America’s natural resources. This bill has significant impact on our agricultural industries, farmer livelihoods, food security and access, and the environment.

The Farm Bill is developed and written by the U.S. Senate and House Agriculture Committees and is renewed every 5-7 years with the last farm bill voted into place in 2018. The 2018 farm bill covered commodities, conservation, nutrition, credit, rural development, research & extension, forestry, energy, horticulture, crop insurance, and miscellaneous topics. Each Farm Bill proposes a budget for programs like crop insurance, nutrition assistance, training programs, grants, and others that assist agricultural producers. The 2018 Farm Bill was estimated to cost $428 billion across it’s 5-year lifespan, with the majority of funding (76%) going towards supplemental nutrition programs such as SNAP. Other budgeted programs include crop insurance (9%), commodities (7%), conservation (7%), and other programs (1%). Much of the funding included in the Farm Bill is appropriated towards specific causes, but the exact level of spending is discretionary- or up to agricultural leadership to decide. The appropriation process of funding the different components of the Farm Bill occurs on an annual basis following the federal budget cycle.

 This year, legislators are set to draft, debate, and pass a new farm bill that will provide guidance and provisions for agriculture through 2028. The process is as follows: each agricultural committee (House and Senate) creates and approves their own version of the bill internally. Those completed drafts are then presented to the Senate and House of Representatives, who are able to debate and amend the proposed bill before voting to approve a final draft for their chamber. The two drafts of the Farm Bill (one from the Senate and one from the House) are then evaluated and combined by a committee composed of leaders and representatives from both chambers. Finally, the combined final bill is approved by both the Senate and House of Representatives before being signed into law by the President. At this point, the 2023 Farm Bill is still in the drafting phase and has not been introduced in the House or Senate, but is expected to be authorized by September 30, 2023.  

Work on developing the 2023 Farm Bill is already occurring and there are some predictions available as to what priorities will be highlighted. The 2018 bill focused on economics and rural development, agriculture systems and technology, animal health and production, conservation and the environment, food safety and nutrition, and plant health and production. Different organizations are lobbying for 2023 Farm Bill priorities, with topics of nutrition assistance programs, economics and rural development, crop insurance, and conservation high on the list of importance. If you have questions about the 2023 Farm Bill, please contact Rick Allen (House of Representatives) or Raphael Warnock (Senate).

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