IOWA, USA — Gov. Kim Reynolds joined 16 other GOP governors Monday in sending a joint letter to top congressional leaders urging for an updated Farm Bill.
The letter makes it clear that the governors oppose an extension and that a new Farm Bill is needed now.
“The Farm Bill sets farm policy for five years at a time,” Iowa Farmers Union president Aaron Lehman said. “It covers all sorts of agriculture: from nutrition to farm support payments to conservation to crop insurance.”
By Dec. 31, members of Congress must decide whether to extend the Farm Bill by a year or create a new one to cover the next five years.
With Democrats and Republicans at odds with each other, Lehman said Iowa farmers are caught in the middle.
“Farmers are trying to make plans for the coming year, whether it's what to plant or what conservation practices to use,” he said. “With all these unknowns out there, it just makes life a lot more difficult.”
Lehman wants to see Democrats and Republicans in Washington put political differences aside, but he’s less than optimistic that’ll happen.
“It's looking more and more like we will not have a Farm Bill by the end of the year,” Lehman said.
The letter goes on to say that farmers have faced a number of challenges like inflation and natural disasters in recent years. According to the letter, the current Farm Bill, which was signed into law in 2018, does not address the current needs of farmers.
“We have a price structure that has drastically changed since the last Farm Bill,” Lehman said. “Prices that farmers are receiving are way down and the prices we pay for our inputs have gone way up.”
Overall, Lehman said he is disappointed that the governors didn’t weigh in until now.
“Saying we've got to do it now is right, but that message is way too late,” Lehman said. “It should have been given a lot sooner.”
The governors' letter also included a dire warning that many farmers won’t be able to continue operating after this year:
Our nation’s agriculture industry is in trouble and if meaningful support is not provided soon, the well-being of the nation is at risk. Reauthorization of a Farm Bill and
immediate assistance in the interim will allow farmers and ranchers to do what they do best—provide for America and feed the world.
We collectively request that Congress fulfills its obligation to protect and revitalize the agriculture industry before it’s too late. Any delay would directly impact every
community in America.