Ag Aid Remains in Limbo as Government Shutdown Looms

The Hill’s Emily Brooks, Al Weaver and Mychael Schnell reported late Thursday evening that “Congress is racing toward a shutdown at the end of the day Friday, and Republicans appear no closer to finding a path forward that will keep the lights on and appease President-elect Trump.”

“The latest setback roiled the House on Thursday evening, when Democrats and a band of Republicans rejected a bill that paired a three-month government funding extension, $110 billion in disaster and farm aid and other measures with a two-year suspension of the debt limit — the latter of which was a last-minute demand by Trump,” Brooks, Weaver and Schnell reported. “That plan B was cobbled together after GOP lawmakers, Trump and Elon Musk torpedoed the first deal Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) negotiated with Democrats, with the influential Republicans criticizing the policy add-ons included — like a health care policy deal and cost of living raise for members of Congress — that ballooned the legislation to over 1,500 pages.”

The Hill’s Mike Lillis, Emily Brooks and Mychael Schnell reported Friday morning that “Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said Republicans have arrived at a plan C to avert a shutdown and the House will vote Friday morning on the legislation.”

“‘Yeah, yeah, we have a plan,’ Johnson said Friday morning as he entered the Capitol. ‘We’re expecting votes this morning, so you all stay tuned. We’ve got a plan,” Mike Lillis, Emily Brooks and Mychael Schnell reported. He did not say what it entails.”

Ag Aid Remains in Limbo

Agri-Pulse’s Philip Brasher reported Thursday evening that the bill that failed on Thursday “included $100 billion in disaster assistance, plus the $10 billion in ag market relief that is critical to get the support of many farm-district Republicans. But dropped from the legislation was a provision that would allow year-round sales of E15.”

“The new legislation included a one-year extension of the 2018 farm bill but did not earmark funding for a series of smaller expired programs that would have been provided money through the original version of the legislation,” Brasher reported. “Also absent from the GOP bill was a provision that would have restored SNAP benefits to people who were victims of skimming.”

Brasher reported that “House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson, R-Pa., (had) endorsed the legislation. ‘The bill released this evening provides much needed relief for agriculture, including $10B in emergency economic aid, which will help address the significant losses incurred due to both weather and market related issues. This addition of economic support is an important financial bridge, one that will help mitigate the severe downturn in the agricultural economy,’ Thompson said in a statement.”

I voted in favor of the American Relief Act tonight, which included critical disaster relief, economic assistance, and a Farm Bill extension for our farmers.

America’s farmers need help NOW, and our country does not need a costly government shutdown.

— Rep. Austin Scott (@AustinScottGA08) December 20, 2024

“Ethanol industry groups expressed anger that the E15 provision was dropped in the new bill,” Brasher reported. “‘Leaving E15 on the cutting room floor is like putting coal in the stocking of America’s drivers, farmers, and the rural communities that depend on American bioethanol,’ Growth Energy said in a statement.”

“‘Pulling E15 out of the bill makes absolutely no sense and is an insult to America’s farmers and renewable fuel producers,’ Geoff Cooper, president and CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association, said in a statement,” according to Brasher’s reporting.

How a Shutdown Might Affect USDA

FarmPolicy News discussed during the shutdown threats in September that “although many programs are exempt, the public is still likely to feel the impact of a shutdown in several ways,” the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget wrote, including in a potential lapse of some environmental and food inspection and the availability of benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

“Though funding for the SNAP program is mandatory, the ability to send out ‘food stamp’ benefits could be affected by a shutdown, since continuing resolutions have generally only authorized the Agriculture Department (USDA) to send out benefits for 30 days after a shutdown begins,” the Committee wrote. “During the 2018-2019 shutdown, the USDA paid February SNAP benefits early on January 20, just before the 30-day window ended, but it would have been unable to pay March benefits had the shutdown continued. In addition, during any shutdown, stores are not able to renew their Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card licenses, so those whose licenses expire would not be able to accept SNAP benefits during a shutdown.”