The chairman of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee says he’s confident a Farm Bill 2.0 can move quickly in the U.S. House this year.
“I’m hoping to get that on the House floor by the end of February, definitely going to get a markup done by the end of February.”
G.T. Thompson says ag committee leaders on both sides of the aisle in the U.S. House understand the importance of getting this done, especially in the current economic climate.
“If it doesn’t wind up being strongly bipartisan, it shows you how bad politics can be, but I choose to be very optimistic.”
Congress has extended the 2018 Farm Bill three times, because lawmakers haven’t been able to agree on food assistance and how much money to spend. A partial farm bill was passed last July as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Thompson says this second farm bill could be the legislative vehicle to advance ag priorities like E15 and additional farmer aid, which weren’t included in recent spending bills.
“E15 would be a great expansion of the market. It would be great for affordability and, quite frankly, the environment and agriculture,” he says. “For the bridge payment, I’m predicting we’re somewhere close to $17.5 million is where we’ll be.”
According to Thompson, this bill will be about 80 percent policy and 20 percent spending, focused on strengthening risk management, improving market access and modernizing ag programs.
EDITOR’S TAKE:
It is time! Time for a new Farm Bill from Congress. Kicking the can down the road is not a sustainable strategy. Yes, they did advance some policies in the One Big Beautiful Bill, but the job is not finished. Conditions in agriculture are changing. Reverting back to the outdated “permanent” Farm Bill dating back to the 1940’s, is not an option. Let’s hope Chairman Thompson can get the job done this time. It is a perfect opportunity to approve E15 year-round as well.
Speaking of getting the job done, let me remind you that The Certified Ag Group has expanded the umbrella to include extensive relationships with professional rodeo and horse organizations as well. In addition, be on the lookout for more exciting news about even more relationships that expand your audience. We do live in exciting times!
