Senate Farm Bill Omits E15, Prop 12 and Pesticide Labeling

Politico’s Grace Yarrow reported that “Senate Agriculture Chair John Boozman (R-Ark.) released a farm bill proposal Tuesday that would make sweeping agriculture policy changes while excluding Democrats’ top demand, teeing up a partisan fight that could scuttle the package.” “Boozman’s budget-neutral draft legislation largely mirrors the GOP-led House farm bill that passed in April with the help of 12 Democratic votes,” Yarrow reported. “The senator’s version omits the most controversial pieces of the House’s base text, including provisions that would bar states from creating laws on pesticide labeling and certain animal confinement standards.”

“The package does not include a measure in the House’s text that would codify the transfer of the Food for Peace aid program to USDA due to jurisdictional hurdles in the Senate, according to committee staff,” Yarrow reported. “It also excludes House-passed language that would allow Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits to be used to purchase hot rotisserie chicken.” “The Senate package rejects Democrats’ demands to delay the starting date for states to begin sharing the cost of providing SNAP benefits, as POLITICO first reported Monday,” according to Yarrow. “That could jeopardize GOP hopes of winning bipartisan support, as many committee Democrats have said they won’t vote for a farm bill that doesn’t push the implementation date.” E&E News’ Andres Picon and Jennifer Yachnin reported that “a bipartisan proposal to authorize year-round sales of E15 biofuel, which is 15 percent ethanol, did not make it into the Senate draft. The House passed a version of that proposal after months of Republican-led negotiations, but it faces a rocky path forward in the Senate. The omission comes as little surprise, however Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said last week he did does not see the farm bill as the best vehicle, suggesting the E15 language could end up in an annual defense authorization bill instead.”

What is in the Senate Farm Bill 2.0 Proposal?

Progressive Farmer’s Jake Zajkowski reported that “the legislation includes several farm-focused provisions. Farmers would have access to higher Farm Service Agency direct loans and guaranteed loan limits. Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) payment limits would increase from $50,000 to $125,000 and expand USDA’s emergency haying and grazing authority.” “New certification pathways would allow agricultural retailers and crop consultants to provide conservation technical assistance, and conservation loans could be used for precision agriculture equipment,” Zajkowski reported. “Cotton farmers would be able to both buy Stacked Income Protection Plan (STAX) crop insurance coverage and enroll in the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) program.” “The bill clarifies that whole milk is allowed in school breakfast programs,” Zajkowski reported. “…A provision in the text strengthens enforcement of the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) by increasing penalties for false filings. Foreign landowners who knowingly submit incomplete, misleading or false reports would face a minimum civil penalty equal to 5% of the fair market value of their agricultural land interest. The legislation maintains a maximum penalty of 25%. The changes are intended to improve compliance and oversight of foreign ownership of U.S. farmland, the text explained.”

Ag Groups Largely Praise Proposal as Step in the Right Direction

Hoosier Ag Today’s C.J. Miller reported that “several of the nation’s largest agricultural organizations welcomed Boozman’s proposal as a meaningful step toward completing a five-year farm bill, arguing that farmers need greater certainty from federal programs amid challenging economic conditions.” “The American Soybean Association said the framework includes a number of priorities sought by soybean growers, including investments in the farm safety net, conservation programs, rural development initiatives, research funding and market development opportunities,” Miller reported. “…The American Farm Bureau Federation likewise endorsed the framework as an important starting point while emphasizing that additional work remains.”

Built for farmers.

Built for rural America. Built for the future. Farm Bill 2.0 delivers certainty to farm families, invests in agricultural research, expands rural resources and helps ensure the people who feed America have the tools and support they need for generations to… pic.twitter.com/IcjKVXPPfb — Senate Ag Committee Republicans (@SenateAgGOP) June 23, 2026

“Yet even as agricultural groups applauded progress, several organizations quickly highlighted what they viewed as critical omissions,” Miller reported. “Most notably, the draft does not include language addressing California’s Proposition 12, a voter-approved law that established animal housing requirements for pork sold within the state. The measure has become one of the most contentious issues in agricultural policy, with many livestock groups arguing it effectively imposes California standards on producers nationwide.” “Beyond the Proposition 12 dispute, Farm Bureau said it remains focused on securing additional economic assistance for farmers facing what the organization described as a multiyear downturn in the farm economy, as well as congressional approval of year-round sales of E15 gasoline blended with 15% ethanol,” Miller reported.

Markup Likely After July Fourth Recess

Progressive Farmer’s Zajkowski reported that “Boozman has already indicated that a Senate Agriculture Committee markup is likely to occur after the July Fourth recess and before the August break, which runs from July 13 to Aug. 7.” “‘Hopefully, at the end of the day, we’ll get them (Democrats) on board and have a product that we can all be proud of and most importantly … a product that will help out farmers,’ said Boozman in a radio interview this week,” Zajkowski reported. “Beyond appropriations and defense legislation, Congress has not convened a formal conference committee since 2023 and has done so only rarely since 2019. If the Senate committee advances a partisan bill, the farm bill could face a prolonged back-and-forth process between the House and Senate before a final agreement is reached.”