By Clint Thompson
The next farm bill is closer than ever to becoming reality. The House version has already been voted on and approved.
Now it is the Senate’s turn, and according to Sen. John Boozman (R-AR), chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, the committee plans to release text of its version within the next week or two, according to a story in Blue Book Services
The Senate is also expected to vote on the bill before the Independence Day recess.
Boozman emphasized that in order to secure the required 60 votes, produce industry advocates, like the International Fresh Produce Association and Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, need to directly lobby Democratic senators.
The Senate Agriculture Committee hopes to target committee markup by July or August.
House Version
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Farm, Food and National Security Act of 2026, commonly known as the farm bill, on April 30 by a 224-200 vote. Boozman (R-AR) released the following statement after the House of Representatives passed Farm Bill 2.0:
“House passage of a bipartisan Farm Bill 2.0 is a testament to Chairman GT Thompson’s strong leadership, and I congratulate him on this significant achievement. This is an important step toward updating long-overdue policies that support our farm families and strengthen rural communities. We’ve put more farm in the farm bill through the Working Families Tax Cuts, and this legislation builds on that success. I remain committed to working with my colleagues in the Senate to continue this momentum and deliver Farm Bill 2.0 to the president’s desk to be signed into law. I look forward to releasing legislative text in the coming weeks.”
The farm bill is a piece of legislation that is scheduled to be renewed every five years. President Trump signed the Farm Bill into law on Dec. 20, 2018. But it expired at the end of September 2023. The 2018 farm bill totaled $800 billion. The next farm bill could approach $1.5 trillion.