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Groups say farm bill proposes wrong kind of reforms

Several groups are pushing for farm subsidy reform in the 2018 Farm Bill.

Daren Bakst with the Heritage Foundation says the proposed House farm bill has reform – but is headed in the wrong direction.  “This House bill, in its current form, actually makes the market distortions even worse,” he says.  “It places less faith in farmers and their ability to compete in the marketplace like other businesses than the 2014 Farm Bill did.  And that was pretty bad as it was.”

Scott Faber with the Environmental Working Group says the farm bill needs a tighter means test.  “For example, limit subsidies to one person per farm,” he says.  Faber says they’d also like to see Reductions to crop insurance subsidies from 62 percent to 48 percent and reductions of subsidies to insurance agents and companies.

Josh Sewell with Taxpayers for Common Sense says the House Ag Committee farm bill is fiscally irresponsible and picks winners and losers in the ag sector.  “The bill includes a provision to automatically ratchet up government-guaranteed prices in the two primary agribusiness income entitlement programs ARC and PLC,” he says.  “This means long after prices have risen above current levels, even slight dips in market prices will send checks cascading from the Treasury.”

The groups argue the proposed farm bill allows too many subsidy payments to the largest and richest of farmers and allows producers’ non-immediate family members (cousins, nieces and nephews) to qualify for commodity subsidy payments of up to $125,000 a year.

The Heritage Foundation, the Environmental Work Group, the R Street Institute, National Taxpayers Union, Citizens Against Government Waste, and Taxpayers for Common Sense took part in a call with reporters on Wednesday.