According to the Kentucky Farm Bureau, farmers in the commonwealth have not been affected by the lack of a new Farm Bill. Last November, Congress extended the five-year Farm Bill passed in 2018 through September 30. Ericka King, the bureau’s director of National Affairs and Government Relations, said there should be enough money left to fund programs through at least the end of the year.
“One of the biggest things that we know needs to be updated in the Farm Bill is reference prices, and that's the tool that is utilized to help determine the amount of a benefit that goes out to a farmer.”
King said reference prices in the 2018 Farm Bill don’t accurately reflect farmers’ input costs today. Other Farm Bill programs are two that benefit lower-income Americans.
“The Farm Bill covers much more than just farm programs like crop insurance. Roughly 80 percent of the funding that goes towards the farm bill actually goes towards nutrition programs such as SNAP and WIC.”
King said the Farm Bill also includes “very significant” programs that promote farm products overseas. She said she’s cautiously optimistic a new Farm Bill will get done, but the timing may depend on the outcome of the November elections.
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