Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley says it's important to get a new, five-year farm bill with updated programs. Congress was supposed to pass a new ag bill in 2023. Instead, it passed a one-year extension. Then it extended the 2018 bill again last week.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Last week Congress passed a new budget bill, but not a long-term one, and that was a disappointment for many neighbors who work here on farms and in the ag industry.
I’m Southwest Iowa neighborhood reporter Katrina Markel.
It’s why, in 2025, a new farm bill is on the wish list for many.
“It’s absolutely necessary because we didn’t get a five-year farm bill last year or this year and it should have been last year,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley.
Instead, Congress has continued to extend the 2018 bill.
The farm bill addresses everything from loan and conservation programs to SNAP food assistance programs.
Last week Sen. Chuck Grassley said the existing bill is outdated.
“Because it (the new bill) will include upgrades in the programs to reflect the 20% inflation,” the senator said.
An earlier version of the budget bill included a provision for year-round sales of E15, a fuel with a higher percentage of ethanol. But, after President-elect Donald Trump and his allies expressed objections to the overall bill, E15 sales were removed from the legislation. National Corn Growers Association President Kenneth Hartman Jr. said in a statementhis organization was “deeply disappointed” that the provision didn’t pass.