Bill must pass—otherwise, we risk food and national security

As a farmer and former Tennessee Agriculture commissioner, I can attest that providing the food and fiber on which Americans depend requires long hours, taking risks, and enduring volatile markets.

It also requires support from Congress. With farmers and agriculture producers at the top of mind, House Republicans delivered when the House Agriculture Committee (HAC) passed the bipartisan “Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2024,” commonly referred to as the Farm Bill.

Unlike most authorization bills in Congress, this legislation will be in effect for five years. It sets critical agriculture policy and authorizes the funding of farm safety net and nutrition assistance programs. It is one of the last bills in Congress that goes through regular order that touches every American. We knew we had to get it right.

Farm Bill proposal expands crop insurance

The Farm Bill passed by HAC Republicans and a block of Democrats is the product of a process spanning years of listening to stakeholders, including in Tennessee’s 6th Congressional District.

Around 1,000 jammed the Farm Bureau Expo Center in Lebanon to attend the Future Farmers Association annual Ham Breakfast as part of the Wilson County Fair – Tennessee State Fair.

In Lebanon last year, HAC Chairman G.T. Thompson and other committee members on both sides of the aisle attended a Farm Bill listening session. I want to thank every Tennessean who spoke about the needs of producers and Tennesseans. Your input was impactful.

Programs in the Farm Bill, like the Federal Crop Insurance Program, which is the No. 1 risk-mitigating instrument producers have, are critical to protecting our nation’s food supply. They provide risk protection and other support for farmers who experience natural disasters, adverse growing conditions, and/or fluctuations in market prices. In their current form, the coverage options are far from meeting the growing needs of our nation’s producers. That’s why this Farm Bill expands the supplemental coverage option of crop insurance to provide up to 90% coverage.

Nationally, farmers expect the largest ever recorded year-to-year dollar drop in net farm income this year, which is estimated to decrease by $40 billion from 2023. Given the predicaments, farmers cannot wait any longer for relief. That’s why we must provide an adequate safety net to protect against production and market hardships, which is what we did when we increased reference prices for all covered commodities by 10-20%, which producers have desperately requested for years. These new price levels will allow the payment trigger to take effect and support farmers.

Contrary to what some Democrats have said, the Farm Bill does not cut benefits to those in need. Make no mistake: the Farm Bill passed by the Agriculture Committee protects SNAP by preventing future unelected bureaucrats in the executive branch from unilaterally changing benefits, unless cost-neutral, without congressional approval.

This frees up $27 billion in savings over 10 years. Let me be clear: saving and cutting are not the same—despite politically charged messaging attempts.

According to the Congressional Budget Office February 2024 baseline, nutrition assistance will account for nearly 80% of spending in the Farm Bill or $1.148 trillion. Congress must safeguard taxpayer dollars to ensure they are being used frugally and appropriately, especially as inflation and budget deficits continue to run rampant.

In all, this is an undeniably bipartisan bill that gained the support of a number of House Democrats on the Agriculture Committee. Chairman Thompson, all of us on the Agriculture Committee, and agriculture stakeholders from around the nation all know that this Farm Bill must be bipartisan if it stands a chance to be passed into law — and it is bipartisan.

With Tennessee losing nearly 7,000 farms since 2017, a fact that should concern all of us, it has never been more paramount for Congress to pass this critical bill to guarantee our food security, and in turn, our national security. Not only do our farmers depend on it, but you do, too.