THE LAND — JULY 22/JULY 29, 2022
www.thelandonline.com — “Where Farm and Family Meet”
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Today’s Farm Bill different from original 54-page document Even though there is still lunch programs. The curover a year remaining on the rent Farm Bill passed in current Farm Bill, discussions 2018 was over 1,000 have already been ongoing pages in length, and consince earlier this year on tains 12 separate titles, developing the next Farm Bill. which cover a multitude The current Farm Bill, known of programs adminisas the “Agriculture tered by USDA. Improvement Act of 2018”, Under the crop loan expires on Sept. 30, 2023, and FARM PROGRAMS program, producers can will include coverage of the take out a low interest 2023 crop year. By Kent Thiesse loan with USDA, using Farm Bills date back to Great the crop as collateral Depression era of the 1930’s, with the before it is sold. The producer can either first Farm Bill having just two titles, repay the loan principal plus interest and being only 54 pages in length. The when the crop is sold or can forfeit the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1933 crop to USDA. Over the past several established the crop loan program, decades, the crop loan program has been which is still in existence today. used extensively by farm operators to get needed working capital for purchasThe Agricultural Act of 1949, which is also known as the “permanent farm ing crop inputs for the following crop year. Most national crop loan rates were legislation”, was never repealed or increased as part of the 2018 Farm Bill, allowed to expire, and becomes the and some groups are pushing for furFarm Bill legislation for many commodity programs if a new Farm Bill is ther increases in the commodity loan rates in the next Farm Bill. not enacted when the previous Farm Bill expires. Many provisions in the Land set aside and conservation pro1949 legislation are very outdated and grams were added to Farm Bills in the did not include the SNAP program, 1950’s, with the establishment of the the current crop insurance program, Soil Bank Program. While the Soil or many popular ag and conservation Bank Program no longer exists, there programs, including CRP. Falling back have been many other set-aside and to the 1949 legislation gives Congress conservation programs, including the extra incentive to complete Farm Bills popular Conservation Reserve in a timely manner. Program (CRP) which was added in Some members of Congress are hop- the 1985 Farm Bill. The 2014 Farm Bill reduced the maximum CRP acreing to move toward finalizing a new age from 32 million acres to 24 million Farm Bill by the end of 2022 or early acres, which was the lowest level since 2023 to allow adequate time for the the initiation of the CRP program. The U.S. Department of Agriculture to 2018 Farm Bill gradually increased implement the new legislation. the maximum CRP acres back to 27 However, reaching that goal may be million acres. There will be slightly difficult, given the mid-term elections over 23 million acres in the CRP prolater this year and potential changes gram by the end of 2022. There will in the U.S. House and Senate likely be strong efforts by some memAgriculture Committees in the 2023 bers of Congress, as well as agricultursession of Congress. al and environmental organizations, to When most people hear of a “Farm increase the CRP participation and Bill,” they think of the commodity pro- acreage in the next Farm Bill to grams and payments which affect crop enhance carbon sequestration efforts. producers. Some people may be aware There are also several other conservathat crop insurance and conservation tion programs that are part of the curprograms are included under the Farm rent Farm Bill, including the Bill, and some are knowledgeable that Environmental Quality Incentives Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (EQIP) and the Conservation Program (SNAP) and food stamps are Stewardship Program (CSP), and the part of the Farm Bill legislation. Agricultural Conservation Easement However, very few people outside of Program (ACEP). government officials and policy experts Food stamps were added to Farm are aware that the Farm Bill also covBill in 1973, with program being ers funding for rural fire trucks and administered by USDA. Slightly over ambulances, export promotion, inter80 percent of the proposed funding for national food aid, forestry programs, ag research and extension education at the next Farm Bill will go to SNAPrelated programs, which includes the land-grant universities, and school
food stamp program, the women, infants, and children (WIC) program, and the school lunch program. The Federal budget outlay for the SNAP program more than doubled from 2008 to 2013, then declined briefly before increasing again in 2020 and 2021, due to the economic challenges caused by the Covid pandemic. Some members of Congress and other groups would like to see the Nutrition Title and SNAP programs removed from the Farm Bill. However, the Nutrition Title programs are important to nearly every member of Congress ― including those in urban areas. About 10-15 percent of the funding in the proposed Farm Bill will be targeted for farm commodity programs and crop insurance programs. The current Farm Bill provides eligible crop producers the choice between the county revenue based Ag Risk Coverage (ARC-CO) program, or the price-only Price Loss Coverage (PLC) program for corn, soybeans, wheat, and other eligible commodity crops. Some farm organizations are pushing for higher crop reference prices in the 2023 Farm Bill, given the much higher crop input costs which have occurred in the past couple of years. The current Farm Bill doe allow for small gradual increases in the crop reference prices during extended periods of higher commodity prices. The dairy margin protection program and sugar support programs are also included under the commodity title of the Farm Bill. Most crop producers and ag lenders will highlight a sound working crop insurance program as the centerpiece for a solid risk management plan in a farm operation. Over 95 percent of the corn and soybean acres in the Upper Midwest are typically insured by some type of crop insurance coverage. Most crop insurance premiums are subsidized at a rate of 60-65 percent by the
federal government, as part of the Farm Bill. Some members of Congress and some organizations are calling for some changes and modifications to the current Federal Crop Insurance program, while most farm organizations are lobbying to keep the current program. Some livestock producer organizations would like to see enhancements to risk management programs for livestock production. Passage of a new Farm Bill is very complex, with programs ranging from farm commodity programs to food and nutrition programs, from conservation programs to rural development programs, and many more. In many cases, finalizing a Farm Bill in Congress can be quite controversial, and not necessarily by political party lines. The various Farm Bill programs become quite geographical, with members of Congress wanting to protect the farm, food, conservation, and economic interests of their state or congressional district. The very large federal budget deficit in recent years has added a new element to successful passage of a large Farm Bill. Currently, both the U.S. House and U.S. Senate Ag Committees are seeking input on the 2023 Farm Bill through a series of Congressional hearings and listening sessions both in Washington DC and in committee members’ states or districts. In addition, the House Ag Committee is offering an opportunity to submit feedback and ideas for the next Farm Bill through an online Farm Bill feedback form”, which is available at https://agriculture.house.gov/news/documentsingle. aspx?DocumentID=2561 Development of the 2023 Farm Bill and other ag policy issues will garner plenty of attention during the Farmfest candidate forums and other feature forums taking place Aug. 2-4. Details on the forums can be found elsewhere in this issue of The Land. v
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