At first, the farm bill debate in Congress this spring felt like deja vu all over again.
Five years ago, back in 2013, the House tussled over whether to reduce SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits, which led to the bill’s defeat in June, and it took six months for a new farm bill to finally pass in both chambers. This spring, SNAP benefits reemerged as the battleground issue in the bill and once again, the bill was defeated in the House in late May.
Since then, both the House and the Senate have each passed new versions of the farm bill, which will provide a key safety net program to farmers and producers over the next five years. In the coming weeks, representatives from both sides will be negotiating to reconcile the differences between the two versions in the conference committee. The goal is to deliver a bill to the president’s desk by Sept. 30, when the 2014 bill expires.
However, the possibility of extending the 2014 farm bill still lingers. There are many differences to iron out and not a great deal of time to get the job done. Unlike the Senate, the House did not cancel its August recess. After that, congressmen up for re-election will be in full campaign mode. Meanwhile, a potentially contentious confirmation process for the new Supreme Court justice awaits. It remains to be seen if these factors will slow the work of the conference committee.
Here is a quick list of the key differences in both versions of the bill.
SNAP: The House version of the bill kept the proposed SNAP work requirements intact as it narrowly passed the bill in June. However, on the Senate side, Agriculture Committee members removed these requirements from its version, and the bill passed by a wide margin.
Farm income safety net: These commodity and crop insurance programs were left intact. Still, there are some differences to work out.
The Senate version proposes a boost to Agricultural Risk Coverage by improving benchmark yields, and it also revises the dairy program, renaming it the Dairy Risk Program. The House version makes cuts to ARC, along with small reductions to dairy, while increasing spending on Price Loss Coverage.
Conservation: Major differences in conservation dollars will need to be ironed out. The House bill eliminates the Conservation Stewardship Program, and proposes folding some of those funds into the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, both of which are run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Senate version keeps those programs largely in place.
As the new version of the farm bill takes shape, it's a good time to think about taking a fresh look at the insurance needs of your farming operation. Make an appointment with a Minnwest Bank insurance agent today.