By Hudson Stolz | US Environmental Policy Student

When most people hear about the “Farm Bill,” they might think the multi-year law only benefits farmers, but that is far from the truth. While it serves to stabilize prices and guarantees revenue for farmers, the positive ripple effects are felt by everyday consumers. Through congressional gridlock and funding freezes, the effectiveness of the Farm Bill is in Jeopardy.

Originally enacted in 1933, the Farm Bill was established to combat troublesome price fluctuations, provide reliable funding for capital expenditures, and support farmers recovering from natural disasters.[1] The Farm Bill has since grown to provide funding for many programs under U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) that helps low-income individuals buy food, the Agriculture Risk Coverage program (ARC) that assures revenue for farmers, the Price Loss Coverage program (PLC) that guarantees prices for qualified crops, and the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) that supports farmers in converting eroded land to vegetative cover.[2]

These programs are important for farmers because of the industry’s variable costs and revenue. For example, a farmer’s expenses and sales are spread over the course of many months, sometimes even years. Prices can easily fluctuate between when a farmer decides to start producing and the day that they sell their harvest due to supply and demand principles.[3] In addition, there are many environmental challenges that farmers are increasingly more likely to face, such as bad weather, changes to normal growing seasons, and the increased intensity of natural disasters.[4] Therefore, it is necessary for farmers to receive consistent prices and guaranteed support from the government to be willing to take out loans and produce food. The programs mentioned above, administered by the USDA, provide farmers with this consistency and peace of mind by protecting them from significant losses.

Access to affordable nutrition is the biggest benefit that consumers receive from the Farm Bill. When analyzing the budget of the 2018-2023 Farm Bill, most of the money went towards nutrition programs. In a study from the USDA Economic Research Service, 76% of the Farm Bill’s budget was spent on nutrition efforts such as SNAP, 9% was spent on crop insurance such as the Whole Farm Revenue Protection Program, 7% was spent on commodities through the price loss coverage program, and 7% was spent on the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP).^[5] This means that with $428 billion of total funding, $325.8 billion went towards making nutrition costs bearable for low-income citizens. In addition, during the 2023 fiscal year, more than 42.1 million people received support from SNAP every month.[6] That equals more than 12.6% of all US residents. In certain states like New Mexico, the portion of residents receiving SNAP benefits was as high as 23.1%.^[7] Therefore, we must not cut funding to SNAP in the next Farm Bill or freeze funds under the Trump administration, so that these low-income families can continue to afford healthy meals.

Furthermore, from a cost-benefit analysis standpoint, the benefits of SNAP far outweigh the costs. During an economic downturn, SNAP can be a lifeline for our economy’s food and nutrition sector. As more individuals enroll and spend these federally assisted funds, many parties involved during the products’ lifecycle will keep their jobs. These jobs include people selling, trucking, marketing, and producing the goods. With profits generated along the way, the positive effect generated by SNAP multiplies throughout the economy and keeps money circulating instead of freezing.[8] A recent study by the Economic Research Service found that a $1 billion increase in SNAP assistance would increase Gross Domestic Product by $1.54 billion, support 13,560 jobs, and boost income in agriculture industries by $32 million.[9] Currently, the Trump administration is restricting over $230 billion in SNAP funding.^[10] In fact, the administration is looking to defer SNAP food benefit costs onto states. This policy would require states to match 10-25% of benefits over time.^[11] This data provides clear evidence for how farmers, consumers, and everyday citizens benefit from SNAP.

With heightened congressional gridlock and complicated budget plans under the Trump administration, expectations of Congress passing and Trump signing a new Farm Bill are very low.^[12] Similar to other legislation passed through Congress, the Farm Bill is written and passed by members of the Senate and House Committees on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. Each agriculture committee drafts its own version of the bill, then the full chamber debates those bills internally. Leaders from the House and Senate later form a conference committee to combine the bills, and lastly, the full chambers vote on the combined bill before sending it to the president’s desk.^[13] The legislation is normally reevaluated every five years, but can be extended if necessary.

The most recent Farm Bill was signed in 2018, known as the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, and has been extended under the American Relief Act of 2025. Once the farm bill expires, Congress will have 20 days to pass a new bill or an extension.^[14] If Congress fails to establish a new farm bill, programs with mandatory funding provided by the Farm Bill may be terminated, and the effects may vary. Furthermore, if Congress fails to establish a new farm bill or extend the current bill, the law would revert to permanent law, dating back to the great depression.[15] Doing so would cause programs to provide support relative to the spending power during the heyday of agriculture. For dairy, the prices were “more than double what the market is now.”[16] To avoid this reversion, some people recommend that Congress pass a permanent Farm Bill and only pass a new one when needed.

I look forward to seeing how farmers will be supported under the Trump administration and following the development of our nation’s Farm Bill in the coming years.

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[1] Library of Congress. (n.d.). Story Map: History of the United States Farm Bill. Library of Congress. https://www.loc.gov/ghe/cascade/index.html?appid=1821e70c01de48ae899a7ff708d6ad8b

[2] U.S. Department of Agriculture, Farm Service Agency. (n.d.). Farm Bill Home. U.S. Department of Agriculture. https://www.fsa.usda.gov/tools/informational/farm-bill

[3] Schnitkey, G. (2018, November 21). Yield and price change from planting to harvest: How strong is the relationship? farmdoc daily. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. https://farmdocdaily.illinois.edu/2018/11/yield-and-price-change-from-planting-to-harvest-how-strong-is-the-relationship.html

[4] EOS Data Analytics. (2025, February 19). Agriculture Problems and Technology Solutions To Them. EOSDA. https://eos.com/blog/agriculture-problems/

^[5] U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. (2025, January 9). 2018 Farm Bill. U.S. Department of Agriculture. https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/farm-bill/2018-farm-bill

[6] Jones, J. W. (2024, July 22). Percent of population receiving SNAP benefits in fiscal year 2023. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/chart-gallery/chart-detail?chartId=55416

^[7] Congressional Budget Office. (2018, December 11). H.R. 2, Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018: Direct spending and revenue effects for the conference agreement. https://www.cbo.gov/publication/54880

[8] Canning, P., & Morrison, R. M. (2019, July 18). Quantifying the impact of SNAP benefits on the U.S. economy and jobs. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves/2019/july/quantifying-the-impact-of-snap-benefits-on-the-u-s-economy-and-jobs

[9] U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. (2025, January 6). Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) – Key statistics and research. U.S. Department of Agriculture. https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap/key-statistics-and-research

^[10] Thompson, B. G. (2025, March 21). Trump’s attack on SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). Congressman Bennie Thompson. https://benniethompson.house.gov/media/trumps-attacks-ms02/trumps-attack-snap-supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program

^[11] Rosenbaum, D., Bergh, K., & Tharpe, W. (2025, March 11). Imposing SNAP food benefit costs on states would worsen hunger, hurt states’ ability to meet residents’ needs. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. https://www.cbpp.org/research/food-assistance/imposing-snap-food-benefit-costs-on-states-would-worsen-hunger-hurt-states​

^[12] Manning, C., & Williams, P. (2018, December 21). U.S. President Donald Trump signs 2018 Farm Bill into law. Greenhouse Management. https://www.greenhousemag.com/news/us-president-donald-trump-sign-2018-farm-bill-law/

^[13] National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. (n.d.). What is the Farm Bill? National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. https://sustainableagriculture.net/our-work/campaigns/fbcampaign/what-is-the-farm-bill/

^[14] Shofner, P. (2024, October 18). What happens if a new farm bill or extension is not passed before 2025. KCBD. https://www.kcbd.com/2024/10/18/what-happens-if-new-farm-bill-or-extension-is-not-passed-before-2025/

[15] Ibid.

[16] Ibid.