Congress is still on spring break but some have said getting a Farm Bill passed during an election year will be challenging.
Senate Ag Committee Ranking Member John Boozman says he does not think waiting for a new Congress will matter and says it is important to get back to work for the producers.
“People say, ‘You don’t want to do a farm bill, you want to do it next year.’ I believe it’ll be as easy to do it this year as it is next year. So, who knows what the dynamics are going to look like then? But I do know how important this is and how important it is to give our farmers stability. “In the House, there are a number of districts that are in situations where Democrats are holding those districts. They’re red districts, but they do a very good job of representing their folks in those districts, and so they’re hanging on. They’re doing well. They want to get it passed. Republicans want to get it passed, I believe, to show farm country that they’re for them, and they want to do their best to make things as easy as they can for them in a very difficult situation.”
The Farm Bill has been a priority for many on the Hill but there is concern among producers. USDA is predicting a more than 25 percent drop in farm income this year thanks to lower commodity prices, rising production costs, and less government assistance.
