Senator Chuck Grassley met with the media in Iowa and said there is no chance a brand new Farm Bill will be passed before the 118th Congress ends in just a few days.
First reported by Iowa’s 1380 KCIM, the veteran Iowa Republican said a continuing resolution is the only option for funding Farm Bill programs.
According to Grassley, leaving it to the next Congress to pass a massive new Farm Bill could be a positive thing.
The 2018 Farm Bill officially expired in October after a one-year extension. 1, 2024.
Officially known as the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, the Farm Bill of 2018 is the most recent omnibus agriculture bill. It contained 12 titles.
It ended a $900 billion spending bill, but some of that spending has continued through the end of 2024.
According to the Congressional Reserve Service (CRS), updates in the 2018 Farm Bill changed a number of agricultural commodity programs, expanded crop insurance, adjusted conservation programs, reauthorized and revised nutrition assistance, and expanded authority to fundraise for many USDS programs.
The CSR reports that four titles accounted for 99 percent of the 2018 farm bill’s mandatory spending: nutrition (primarily SNAP), commodities, crop insurance, and conservation. All other titles in the expired Farm Bill accounted for approximately 1 percent of mandatory expenditures and received primarily discretionary (appropriated) funds.
Seventeen Republican governors have spoken out against a one-year extension in favor of a new Farm Bill, which would repeal the existing law. The new Farm Bill would be left to the new Congress.
Republican governors wrote to House and Senate leaders on Monday calling for a new farm bill now instead of in 2025. They said agriculture is “the foundation of our economies” and that this crucial industry faces faced strong headwinds over which she has no control.
Governors cited inflation, input costs, natural disasters and the agricultural trade deficit as all impacting producers.
Another short-term extension, known as a Continuing Resolution, prevents a shutdown. Still, the extension shifts most major funding decisions for fiscal year 2025 to the new Congress and President Trump.
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