Senate Advances Farm Bill

On June 13, the U.S. Senate advanced S.3042 (the “Farm Bill” out of Committee by a vote of 20-1. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) was the only ‘nay’ vote on the 21-member committee. Several ASTA priority issues were included in the package, including language to harmonize the Risk Management Agency and the Natural Resource Conservation Service’s guidelines on cover crop use within the crop insurance program. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has committed to moving the Farm Bill to the Senate floor prior to the July 4 recess.

On the House side, there has been a break after several weeks of gridlock. Last week, an agreement was reached on how to handle votes related to immigration between House leadership and the House Freedom Caucus. It is expected there will be two votes on immigration reform this week, and the House Farm Bill will be called back to the House floor the week after that vote. While it is still unclear if the House will be able to advance its Farm Bill, the odds of final passage by the House of Representatives have risen now that an immigration vote has been scheduled.

ASTA will continue to provide updates as the process moves forward.