According to some members of the Farm Bill’s conferral committee, a congressional budget deal may derail farm bill negotiations, particularly if budget negotiators seek to meddle with nutritional subsidies.
For more than two years, the farm bill has been stuck in legislative limbo. While this year’s bill has gotten farther than its 2012 predecessor, House Republicans’ insistence on cutting nearly $40 billion from food stamp funding may keep the bill from passing the Democratically controlled Senate.
The debate over food stamps may also lead the House and Senate budget committees to take control of farm negotiations. Some farm lobbyists have expressed concern that Representative Paul Ryan and Senator Patty Murray’s budget committee may push for increased farm cuts, especially if farm negotiators fail to come to an agreement.
“The farm bill is too easy a target for them not to grab,” said one farm lobbyist.
Some members remain confident that farm negotiations will pass before a budget agreement is reached. “It is much more likely we get done than the budget gets done. They have some big problems,” said Representative Collin Peterson. “We might actually carry the budget rather than they carry us.”
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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer