GOP Lawmakers Likely to Present a ‘Skinny’ Farm Bill this Fall

Now that Republicans on Capitol Hill have cleared their agriculture megabill hurdle by passing the “One Big Beautiful Bill” that was signed by President Trump on the Fourth-of-July, GOP leaders are now looking to pass a smaller Farm Bill that will include important priorities that haven’t been updated since 2018.

Lawmakers already included $67 billion in spending on farm bill programs in the reconciliation bill, according to Politico. That means some of the most expensive priorities were taken care of. However, there are other farm programs and priorities that need funding, extension, or updating.

Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA-15), who serves as the Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, says he’s looking ahead to a “skinny” farm bill, calling it “Farm Bill 2.0” and predicting a cost of less than $8 billion. He expects the Fall legislation to be largely based on what the House Ag Committee advanced in 2024.

“Unless Democrats purely want to play politics, there’s no basis for partisanship with what we’re planning to do with the rest of the Farm Bill,” he said.

Thompson says he plans on finishing the draft for the bill in September.

Source: NAFB News Service