After over 13 hours of debate, the U.S. House Agriculture Committee successfully passed the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2024 in the early morning hours on Friday, May 24th. This bill – introduced by House Ag Committee Chairman G.T. Thompson (R-PA) – passed out of committee with a 33-21 vote with bipartisan support, including four Democrats.
The bill includes increases in statutory reference prices for all covered commodities ranging from 10-20%, raises crop insurance subsidies, provides an option for a voluntary update of base acres, increases marketing loan rates for most commodities, and makes improvements to dairy programs and pricing.
Most of the heated debate surrounded the bill’s proposal to require future updates to USDA’s Thrifty Food Plan, a model for food costs used to establish SNAP benefits, to be cost-neutral. This provision would amount to $27 billion in future savings, but Democrats expressed opposition over this cut to nutrition spending. The committee also debated on the bill’s removal of climate guidelines for Inflation Reduction Act conservation title funding and restricting USDA’s spending authority under the Commodity Credit Corporation, allowing for increased commodity program payments and crop insurance subsidies.
The House bill now heads to the floor, but isn’t expected to hear debate until September, after Congress approves FY25 appropriations proposals. Senate Ag Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) has released a high-level summary of her bill, the Rural Prosperity and Food Security Act of 2024, but no draft language has been introduced, and a date has not been set for mark-up.
Click the link below for a side-by-side comparison of the House and Senate versions of the farm bill developed by Southern Ag Today:
Battlelines Are Being Drawn: Comparing Current Farm Policy Proposals (southernagtoday.org)
“We are encouraged to see a bipartisan farm bill pass out of the House Committee on Agriculture,” says TFBF president Eric Mayberry. “We want to thank Congressman Scott DesJarlais and Congressman John Rose for supporting this crucial legislation ensuring our nation’s food security. We look forward to continued discussions in the rest of the House and encourage the Senate to pursue progress toward a new farm bill becoming law.”
View TFBF’s letter of support for the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2024 here.
“AFBF appreciates the leadership of Chairman Thompson and members of the House Agriculture Committee for the markup and bipartisan support of the Farm, Food, and National Security Act,” said AFBF president Zippy Duvall. “The farm bill affects all of America’s families, and we’re encouraged to see the legislation progress in the House. We urge House leaders to continue the momentum and bring this important legislation to a vote on the floor. We also urge the Senate Agriculture Committee to follow the lead of the House by scheduling a farm bill markup. This is an opportunity for both chambers to work to advance a piece of legislation that will pay off at every dinner table in America.”
