House Ag Chair Aiming for Late February Farm Bill 2.0

Politico’s Rachel Shin reported that “House Agriculture Chair G.T. Thompson has tentatively scheduled a farm bill markup for the week of Feb. 23, according to three people familiar with the plans.”

“Thompson briefed GOP lawmakers on the bill during a member meeting (last week). His farm bill text still hasn’t been formally introduced, but it is expected to have similar priorities to the version that advanced out of committee in May 2024 but never became law,” Shin reported. “Committee staff is still awaiting cost estimates from the Congressional Budget Office, which could delay the markup.”

“House Ag Republicans have said they are hoping to get a floor vote on the bill before the chamber recesses for Easter, according to two of the people, who were granted anonymity to discuss private details,” Shin reported. “The most expensive GOP farm bill priorities — like bolstering commodity and crop insurance programs — were already included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, paid for by slashing food aid spending. The ‘farm bill 2.0,’ as Thompson has dubbed it, will address a number of leftover industry priorities, such as rural development and research plans.”

Brownfield Ag News’ Carah Hart reported that “Thompson says this second farm bill could be the legislative vehicle to advance ag priorities like E15 and additional farmer aid, which weren’t included in recent spending bills.”

“‘E15 would be a great expansion of the market. It would be great for affordability and quite frankly, the environment and agriculture,’ he says. ‘For the bridge payment, I’m predicting we’re somewhere close to $17.5 million is where we’ll be,'” Hart reported. “He says this bill will be about 80 percent policy and 20 percent spending, focused on strengthening risk management, improving market access and modernizing ag programs.”

Ag Committee Ranking Member Believes Timeline Could be Slower

While Thompson is eyeing the end of February for a Farm Bill markup, Brownfield Ag News’ Mark Dorenkamp reported that “there are mixed opinions among House Agriculture Committee members on a farm bill timeline.”

“Iowa Republican Randy Feenstra tells Brownfield Chair GT Thompson remains optimistic,” Dorenkamp reported. “‘We met last week and talked about how important it is to finish up this farm bill, we’ve got to get it done. We are hoping that we can get it done here and get it out of the Ag Committee in the next six weeks.'”

“Ranking Member Angie Craig, a Democrat from Minnesota, referred to Chairman Thompson as the ‘ultimate optimist’ during a news conference Thursday,” Dorenkamp reported. “‘He’s indicating a markup the last week of February I believe, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the optimist timeline moves again either.’ Craig says the recent death of House Ag Committee member Doug LaMalfa of California will likely slow negotiations, and she is warning Republican members not to include ‘poison pills’ like preemption for pesticides that would force Democrats to vote against the farm bill.”

Additionally, Shin reported that “it’s unclear how open Democrats will be to voting for Thompson’s farm bill. While many of them haven’t given up on negotiations, they have said they feel burned by Republicans’ cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.“