Fiscal conservatives in Washington are celebrating the failure of the farm bill, which they criticize as a wasteful boondoggle that fleeces taxpayers.
For two years in a row, the farm bill has failed in the House of Representatives. Last summer, the bill died in committee when Speaker of the House John Boehner refused to allow it to reach the floor in an election year. The most recent failure was the result of Democrats upset at steep food stamp cuts voting against the bill along with fiscal conservatives.
In the wake of the bill’s defeat, fiscal conservatives are jubilant at the defeat of a massive federal spending bill.
In particular, deficit hawks are concerned about the creeping cost of farm subsidies even in the midst of record-breaking farm profits. According to a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, “The 2008 Farm Bill was expected to cost $640 billion over 10 years. So in five years the price of the agricultural dole has jumped 50 percent. Take inflation into account and the real increase was still 40 percent.”
Despite these spending concerns, the possibility of no farm bill being passed into law is slim to none. Even if a new farm bill cannot pass Congress, the House and Senate will almost certainly renew the expired farm bill, ensuring that farmers have access to vital subsidies (and ironically continuing the most controversial and wasteful farm subsidies, making an extension more expensive than a new bill).
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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer