Given the enormous challenges facing production agriculture—including a farm economy that has taken a downward spiral—it is imperative that Congress take action on the Farm Bill before year’s end, the American Bankers Association and more than 300 financial and agricultural organizations wrote today in a joint letter to House and Senate leaders.
Congress has yet to vote on a 2024 Farm Bill. That lack of action comes as harvest prices for major crops have fallen by at least 21% this year. In their letter, the associations noted that the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that net farm income will fall by $55.61 billion in 2024, a more than 27% drop since 2022. Safety net provisions in current law have not kept pace with inflation and are far below the threshold necessary to provide effective relief to farmers, they added.
“The Farm Bill reauthorization provides an opportunity for Congress to address serious challenges in agriculture,” the associations said. “A durable farm safety net, along with risk management tools like a strong federal crop insurance program, voluntary and locally led incentive-based conservation programs, and enhanced international marketing and promotion programs, will be critical in shoring up America’s farm families and rural communities, which otherwise face an uncertain—and potentially calamitous—future.”
