Ag Policy Blog

A coalition of 330 farm groups on Friday sent House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., a letter urging them to take up what's known as Farm Bill 2.0 on the House floor.

The bill has been submitted to the House Rules Committee, which is accepting potential amendments to the bill through Wednesday in anticipation of consideration of a rule the week of April 27 to bring the bill to the House floor.

The Farm Credit Council released the letter on Friday.

"The bipartisan passage through committee is a significant milestone, and we urge House and Senate leadership to build on recent momentum and prioritize timely consideration and passage of a bipartisan, bicameral Farm Bill 2.0," the groups wrote.

"While we recognize the competing demands on congressional time and resources, the timeliness of this legislation to the agricultural economy and rural America cannot be overstated."

Farm Credit Council President & CEO Christy Seyfert said, "Farmers, ranchers and agribusinesses have been operating under farm bill policies written in 2018, and the landscape has changed significantly since that time.

"Simply put, agriculture and rural America cannot continue to manage the challenges of 2026 with the solutions from 2018. This letter reflects the strong interest of agricultural constituencies in all 50 states in completing the farm bill this year."

FARMERS SEND LETTER ON NRCS, USDA STAFFING

A group of 524 farmers organized by Invest In Our Land last week also sent the chairs and ranking members of House and Senate Agriculture committees a letter urging them to make sure that the USDA agencies are "fully staffed, funded, and equipped to serve American farmers and ranchers."

The letter noted that the USDA inspector general found last year that "thousands of USDA staff positions were lost in 2025, including reductions of 22% at NRCS and 24% at the Farm Service Agency."

"We all are used to doing more with less, but for farmers and ranchers, staffing losses mean longer wait times, delayed payments, reduced technical assistance, and fewer staff available to help navigate increasingly complex programs and situations that could be the difference for a family farm staying in business or closing its doors," the letter said.

When members of Congress have complained to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins about low staffing levels, she has urged the members to contact her personally about specific offices.

Invest In Our Land is a group concerned with conservation funding. It was founded by Rebecca Bartels, the former vice president of Trust in Food at Farm Journal. Bartels has declined to reveal the funding source for Invest In Our Land.

Jerry Hagstrom can be reached at jhagstrom@nationaljournal.com

Follow him on social platform X @hagstromreport

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