URBANA, Ill. (RFD NEWS) — Federal farm payment policy may be increasingly misaligned with today’s production realities, raising equity concerns and potential market distortions as new base acres are allocated in 2026.
Jonathan Coppess, with the University of Illinois Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics and former Administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency, says the USDA’s continued reliance on decoupled base acres rewards historical planting decisions rather than current risk exposure.
In a January 15 farmdoc daily analysis, Coppess explains that ARC and PLC payments are tied to base acres, not planted acres, allowing farmers to receive payments for crops they do not grow. With USDA signaling it will prioritize assigning new base acres to formerly unassigned cotton acres, those design flaws are returning to the forefront as program signups are delayed.
Using national average data, Coppess shows that crops with high base-acre payment rates — particularly rice, peanuts, and seed cotton — generate significantly higher total returns when corn or soybeans are planted on those base acres. Two producers growing the same crop can receive vastly different income outcomes solely because of their base-acre history.
Those disparities may influence planting decisions, especially as higher ARC and PLC payments take effect under the Reconciliation Farm Bill. Coppess cautions that this could contribute to oversupply risks in corn and soybeans.
Farm-Level Takeaway: Decoupled base acres may amplify income inequality and distort planting decisions as farm program payments increase.
Tony St. James, RFD NEWS Markets Specialist
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