Latest News From House Ag Committee

The attack on Israel by Hamas adds urgency to GOP efforts to elect a new House speaker. The need to focus on Israel may help get a House GOP leadership decision this week, several lawmakers said. 

House Ag Committee Chairman G.T. Thompson, along with other members, is seeking additional funding sources for the bill, but that will likely be the biggest farm bill hurdle that may trip up lawmakers.

While Sen. McConnell says the budget has little give, Sen. Boozeman has consistently said he will not support a farm bill that doesn't provide an increase in the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) program's reference prices.

The Committee on Ag is looking to solve workforce issues with the formation of the Ag Labor Working Group. "Reforms are desperately needed to address this pressing issue," said Co-Chair Rick Crawford (R-Ar.).

It's not as simple as you might think. House Ag Chair G.T. Thompson shares a rundown of the funding and extension processes. He says the ag committees need to find new dollars to expand the farm bill budget.

The Senate and House Ag committees are facing delays in drafting the next farm bill, and it is expected to be the most expensive farm bill to date, clocking in at around $1.5 trillion.

“We can't prioritize one natural resource concern over all others and we shouldn't prioritize one solution above all others,” Rep. G.T. Thompson (R-Pa.) said.

Rep. Thompson signaled he wants to hear “commitment from everyone, including the president, that we will get this done and in the manner I've been speaking about. Bipartisan, bicameral, on time and highly effective.'"

SNAP, which historically receives the greatest amount of farm bill funding, will see an 82% increase of a quarter-trillion-dollars.

The House will take the reins in writing farm bill 2023. House Ag Chairman Thompson says the pen is “firmly” in his hand, with few tweaks to be made from 2018. The Senate says their version is nearly complete.

USDA's second-highest ranking executive, Jewel Bronaugh, announced her resignation on Thursday as Agriculture Deputy Secretary.

Most now look for President Biden to increase his use of executive orders and regulations to fulfill some other goals, including those in the coming farm bill.

House Republicans asked the General Accountability Office to conduct a study on U.S. lands owned by foreign entities. The letter was signed by scores of other House Republicans.

The Carbon Sequestration Collaboration Act aims to increase agriculture and forestry’s current 13% carbon capture rate by establishing more research and development programs in land use.

Georgia representative David Scott says he will introduce new legislation specifically targeted to help small beef farmers and ranchers.

The House Ag Committee has requested CEOs from the top five meat packers to testify on April 27. The panel will take “other measures” if the CEOs say they will not attend.

The U.S. House of Representatives' Agriculture Committee will hold a hearing on April 27, 2022, on anti-competitive behavior by the nation’s largest beef packers.

On Tuesday, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack rang in on AgriTalk to share agriculture’s angle in the BBB plan with host Chip Flory.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed President Joe Biden’s ‘Build Back Better’ plan, also known as the reconciliation package. This vote came after months of debate and countless rewrites to the plan.

U.S. Senators and Representatives introduce legislation that seeks to return fairness to the cattle marketplace dominated by four major meat packers.

BioUrja Ethanol Trading Manager Jordan Fife shared fuel blending insights on AgriTalk earlier this week while Rep. Axne questioned Build Back Better's biofuel funding in a House Ag. Committee hearing.

IHS Markit’s Ken Ericksen joins AgriTalk to share supply chain discussions while Leprino Foods’ Mike Durkin gives testimony at House Ag Committee hearing to emphasize dairy export issues.

David Wasserman, Senior Editor, U.S. House of Representatives for The Cook Political Report, shares his perspective on potential outcomes of national elections.

The House Agriculture Committee passed the Chronic Wasting Disease Research and Management Act with a unanimous vote, allotting $70 million annually to chronic wasting disease (CWD) control.

The House Ag Committee passed the Cattle Contract Library Act of 2021 by unanimous vote on Thursday. Supporters say the act would give greater transparency to cattle markets and more leverage to producers.

The House passed legislation to raise the debt ceiling. But will the early December deadline provide enough time to reach a consensus?

Roughly 25% of U.S. critical infrastructure is at risk of failure due to flooding. AgriTalk's Chip Flory and Pro Farmer’s Jim Wiesemeyer put a magnifying glass on extreme weather, war, and other hot topics on The Hill.

On Tuesday, Bill Northey weighed in with some perspective on the budget reconciliation bill, which is part of the Biden administration's Build Back Better agenda.

The hearing held on July 28 featured testimony from economists and covered the recent Black Swan events affecting the cattle industry.

New WHIP+ legislation made its way out of the House Agriculture Committee Tuesday. The $8.5B bill expands not only the type of weather events and resulted losses covered, but also the level of drought needed to qualify.

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators introduced legislation that would increase access to gasoline with a higher ethanol blend, after a recent court decision knocked down a rule that had allowed expanded sales of E15.

Less than two weeks after JBS was hit with a cyberattack impacting operations in Australia and North America, Congress is now calling on JBS to provide documents and communications related to the May 30 attack.

Now, Chairman of the House Ag Committee sent a letter to President Biden signaling his support for the proposed infrastructure plans but raised concerns are proposed tax changes including step-up in basis. 

This week Chip Flory and Jim Wiesemeyer discuss President Biden's first 100 days in office, additional details of the 30x30 Plan, a discussion of CRP and more.

This week AgriTalk’s Chip Flory joins Signal to Noise as the new co-host. He and Pro Farmer’s Jim Wiesemeyer discuss the 30x30 plan, the bipartisan outlook ahead of Biden's 100th day in office and more.

Republicans on the House Agriculture Committee unveiled their proposals to address climate change on Friday.

Rural broadband will be at the center of a bipartisan rural infrastructure plan.

Former House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson discusses his future and the future of the ag committee on the DC Signal to Noise Podcast.

Former House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson is headed to consulting firm Combest, Sell & Associates.

House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Glenn Thompson joins DC Signal to Noise to talk about a partisan opening to the 117th Congress for the Ag Committee.

Rep. Mike Conaway of Texas will not seek reelection in 2020.

House Ag Chairman Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) threatened to sue the administrator of USDA’s Farm Service Agency, Richard Fordyce, over continuous sign-ups for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). 

Cong. Rick Crawford (R-Ark.) has his sights set on the chairman’s gavel of the House Agriculture Committee.

Farm Bill negotiators are going quiet as the deadline to finish the legislation nears. However, some in Washington D.C. say it’s likely the hold-up is simply due to the process ‘just taking time.’

A petition from groups representing livestock haulers has the support of 59 members of Congress and could be a potential fix to hours of service regulations.

There are 103 amendments to the House version of the farm bill, several of which aim to make significant changes to the crop insurance programs.