Farmers who grow the crops being hammered the hardest by commodity market declines are hitting Capitol Hill this week, accompanied by ag bankers and Farm Credit lenders, to make a last-ditch push for a new farm bill.
In an unusual lobbying move, teams of farmers representing the row crops that depend on the major commodity title programs plan to visit House and Senate offices, with the groups accompanied by an ag lender to help the case that many farmers will face a dire financial situation heading into next year because of the price declines.
“Congress must act before the end of the year to get that [the farm bill” across the finish line,” said Jake Westlin, vice president of policy and communications for the National Association of Wheat Growers. “It’s not going to be any easier next year.”
A veteran lobbyist told Agri-Pulse the use of cross-commodity teams of farmers to lobby Congress was done at least once before, in lobbying for what became the 2002 farm bill. Commodity groups generally don’t coordinate with each other in visiting lawmakers and their staffs.
NAWG will have members among the cross-commodity teams of farmers along with the National Corn Growers Association, American Soybean Association, National Cotton Council, National Sorghum Producers and USA Rice.
Separately, more than 300 groups have signed a letter that is going to congressional leaders Monday to make the case for a new farm bill.
USDA last week raised its forecast for net farm income this year but still estimated that sales from crops would be down by 10%. Sales from corn and soybeans are expected to fall about 21.9% and 16.7% respectively, while receipts from wheat and cotton are projected down 14.5% and 25.5% respectively
Members of the National Farmers Union and the National Pork Producers Council also will be in the nation’s capital this week. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will speak to NFU members on Monday.
Time is fast running out on passing a new farm bill. The Senate Agriculture Committee has taken no action on a bill, and the House Agriculture Committee’s farm bill still has a $33 billion funding gap that needs to be addressed before it can be put on the House floor. After September, Congress won’t be in session again until after the Nov. 5 election.
Senate GOP Whip John Thune, R-S.D., said in August that Congress was likely to pass another one-year extension of the 2018 farm bill.
That may be the inevitable outcome, but the farm groups lobbying the Hill this week don’t want such an extension attached to the stop-gap funding bill that Congress needs to pass this month to keep the government open after the new fiscal year starts Oct. 1.
A farm bill extension isn’t included in a GOP-backed continuing resolution that the House is expected to vote on this week. The CR has virtually no chance of passing the Senate, because it would extend through March and also includes the SAVE Act, a bill that would require prospective voters to provide documentary proof of their citizenship.
Separately, the House is also set to focus on concerns this week about foreign ownership of U.S. farmland. The House is scheduled to consider a bill that would prohibit individuals and companies “owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction of” the governments of Iran, North Korea, China or Russia from purchasing or leasing agricultural land.
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The Protecting America’s Agricultural Land from Foreign Harm Act, first introduced by Washington Republican Dan Newhouse, would not require any current landowners to divest of land, but those “associated with these governments” would be barred from participating in Agriculture Department programs.
Chinese investors reported owning 349,915 U.S. agricultural acres in 2022, but the Chinese government did not have any direct filings, according to the USDA. Iranian investors held 1,749 acres that year, while Russian investors held 73. No North Korean investors reported holding land.
The House also has scheduled a series of hearings this week on issues important to agriculture.
FDA’s deputy commissioner for human foods, Jim Jones, will testify before a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, a House Agriculture subcommittee will hold a joint hearing with the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee on food distribution problems with USDA’s Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program, which serves about 720,000 seniors.
Also Wednesday, the House Natural Resources subcommittee will have a hearing on bills related to the Endangered Species Act, and a House Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee will have a hearing on implementation of the Biden administration’s latest waters of the U.S. rule, which defines the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act.
Also this week, ABC News will host a debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump on Tuesday night in Philadelphia.
Ahead of the presidential debate, the Farm Foundation on Monday will sponsor a debate on ag issues between Kip Tom, who’s leading the Farmers and Ranchers for Trump Coalition, and Rod Snyder, who recently stepped down as director of EPA’s first Office of Agriculture and Rural Affairs. Tom, an Indiana farmer, served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations food and agriculture programs during the Trump administration.
Here is a list of agriculture- or rural-related events scheduled for this week in Washington and elsewhere (all times EDT):
Monday, Sept. 9
Agriculture Future of America hosts their Policy Institute through Sept.
10. Agri-Pulse Founder Sara Wyant participates in a policy discussion
on Sept. 10, Westin Crystal City.
1 p.m. – Farm Foundation forum on the GOP and Democratic platforms, National Press Club.
4 p.m. – House Rules Committee meeting to consider bills including H.R. 9456, Protecting American Agriculture from Foreign Adversaries Act of 2024 and a fiscal 2025 continuing resolution, H-313 Capitol.
4 p.m. – USDA releases weekly Crop Progress report.
Tuesday, Sept. 10
10 a.m. – House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on FDA’s Human Foods program, 2123 Rayburn.
9 p.m. – ABC News hosts debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, Philadelphia.
Wednesday, Sept. 11
8:30 a.m. – Bureau of Labor Statistics releases Consumer Price Index.
10 a.m. – Joint hearing by a House Agriculture subcommittee and the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee on food distributions shortages among tribal and elderly communities, 1300 Longworth.
10 a.m.– House Natural Resources subcommittee hearing on bills related to the Endangered Species Act, 1324 Longworth.
10 a.m. – House Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee hearing, “Waters of the United States Implementation Post-Sackett Decision: Experiences and Perspective,” 2167 Rayburn.
Thursday, Sept. 12
8:30 a.m. – USDA releases Weekly Export Sales report.
10 a.m. – Senate Finance Committee hearing, “The 2025 Tax Policy Debate and Tax Avoidance Strategies,” 215 Dirksen.
Noon – USDA releases monthly Crop Production report and World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates
Friday, Sept. 13
Noah Wicks contributed to this report.
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