On December 6, the House Agriculture Committee held a “Member Day” hearing to give non-ag Members the opportunity voice to their concerns ahead of the reauthorization of the Farm Bill and other proposed legislation within the committee’s jurisdiction.
Below are some key takeaways from the hearing followed by high-level takeaways on some of the commentary in the hearing prepared by Delta Strategy Group.
Key Takeaways
The following is a summary of some of the topics explored in today’s hearing. Each is discussed in further detail in the Discussion section below.
- Yesterday’s hearing covered a wide range of topics discussing various Farm Bill initiatives. Members on both sides of the aisle discussed the best way approach crop insurance, the inclusion of Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in the Farm Bill, and the qualifications for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
- Democrats defended the inclusion of IRA money within the Farm Bill, saying we should build on the success of the conservation programs funded by the IRA, while Republicans said it is in our best interest to keep the IRA money out of conservation programs.
Discussion
Chairman GT Thompson (R-PA)
- Over the past year, we have worked closely with the HouseCommittee on Financial Services to craft the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act (FIT21) a comprehensive framework for the digital asset market. FIT21 will offer certainty for market participants, address regulatory gaps, foster American innovation, and implement vital customer protections in the digital asset ecosystem. This collaborative effort resulted in FIT21 being passed out of both Committees in a bipartisan manner. Our work continues this important policy priority as we pursue the bill’s advancement in the House.
- I have promoted a thoughtful framework of ideas, including the repurposing of IRA dollars as well as a strengthening of Congress’ Article I authority through a forward-thinking Thrifty Food Plan framework, among others. These funding opportunities would not only fine tune the farm safety net but increase the farm bill’s baseline through reinvestment in bipartisan priorities across other titles including conservation, research, and nutrition.
Representative Don Davis (D-GA)
- We must build on the success of the conservation programs funded by the IRA, empowering farmers to adopt practices that are good for the environment and their bottom lines. The Farm Bill must expand opportunities for farmers and rural and rural communities and help farmers to meet increasing renewable energy demands. Increasing opportunities for farmers in the energy space will help farmers diversify income streams, so that American agriculture can remain strong, vibrant, and innovative into the future.
Representative Rick Allen (R-GA)
- One of my main concerns ahead of the Farm Bill is declining margins. We need increased reference prices for Title I commodities and it is imperative that we strengthen risk management options such as Agricultural Risk Protection (ARC) and price loss coverages (PLC). Producers should be allowed to enroll in the Stacked Income Protection Program regardless of their participation in ARC or PLC. I urge the Committee to consider a provision to ensure our farmers have coverage should supply chain issues cause problems with planting or harvesting, like a requirement for including “lack of agronomic inputs” as covered under USDA’s Multi-Peril Crop Insurance policies.
Representative Sean Casten (D-IL)
- We need to preserve IRA dollars in the Farm Bill. We should be incentivizing planting of cover crops through crop insurance programs like other policies in Illinois and Indiana that can reduce farmers’ premiums by $5 per acre for the use of cover crops.
Representative McClellan (D-VA)
- Currently, soil carbon research and monitoring efforts across the federal government are fragmented and siloed. This leads to a lack of interagency communication that prevents us from fully understanding the gaps in research and monitoring. To streamline these efforts, we need the interagency committee to develop a cross agency strategic plan. We need to establish working groups to coordinate soil carbon research priorities, including monitoring, reporting and verification, data collection and management fundamental research, and robust engagement with agricultural producers and communities.
Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)
- Additional baseline could be found in the crop insurance program by lowering subsidies for high income farmers and insurance companies. The crop insurance program is a rare place to find easy savings, promote equity, and make overall health of our farm and ranching communities better. I hope you will look here to be able to find resources that will help the other programs that are sorely in need.
Representative Dan Newhouse (R-WA)
- We need to expand the USDA Market Access Program to support various agriculture groups for foreign marketing and promotional activities. USDA has not been urgent enough in updating organic standards.