CONGRESS’ LONG AG TO-DO LIST: Among the items on lawmakers’ to-do list after 10 straight weeks in session are two must-pass agriculture bills: the farm bill and the Agriculture-Food and Drug Administration appropriations bill. Farm bill extended: Congress extended the 2018 farm bill through September 2024 as part of a stopgap spending measure to avert a government shutdown, which passed last week. The extension keeps a number of key programs from careening over funding cliffs and allows USDA to continue operating farm programs under the 2018 law. Neither chamber’s Agriculture Committee has introduced a new farm bill, or even circulated text, as they continue to work through various funding disagreements. Farm bill outlook: Congress now has an extra 10 months to pass a new farm bill. However, one big disagreement threatens the legislation: missing funds to increase spending on commodity support programs. Republicans for years have eyed nearly $20 billion in Inflation Reduction Act money for conservation and climate-smart agriculture to boost reference prices in USDA commodity programs — a top ask from commodity trade groups. House Agriculture Committee Republicans have also proposed future updates to the Thrifty Food Plan, a benefit calculator for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, to free up additional funds. But Senate Ag Chair Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) ruled that out last week. “We absolutely are going to continue to keep that money in there,” Stabenow told your host. When asked where money could come from to meet Republican demands, Stabenow said bluntly: “We’ll see, but it’s not coming from conservation, and it’s not coming from nutrition.” Stabenow did strike a cheerier tone about a farm bill in 2024, a presidential election year with limited work weeks for Congress. “I’m laser-focused on getting that done,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of different speakers of the House, we’ve had a lot of issues … but I’ve never taken my eye off the ball on getting a five-year farm bill.” Ag-FDA outlook: Congress extended fiscal year 2023 appropriations in two tranches. The first bucket will expire on Jan. 19, the second on Feb. 2. Ag-FDA falls under the earlier deadline. The Senate has passed its version of the bill. But the House remains snared as farm-state Republicans won’t support the bill’s double-digit cuts to agriculture programs and centrist Republicans oppose its ban on mail delivery of the abortion pill mifepristone. As we’ve reported, the House bill’s author, Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), has suggested the House should abandon its draft and proceed directly to conference with the Senate.
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