A new bill introduced by Congressman Adam Gray aims to protect U.S. farmers from economic harm caused by retaliatory tariffs. The “Stop Raising Prices on Food Act” would require the President to get congressional approval before placing tariffs on countries that are major buyers of U.S. agricultural products.
According to the bill, the President would need to submit a request to Congress, and any member in either chamber could introduce a resolution to approve the tariffs. The law would apply to any country that ranks in the top five for U.S. agricultural exports. In 2024, those countries were Mexico, China, Canada, the EU, and Japan.
The proposal follows data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture showing that farmers suffered heavy losses due to retaliatory tariffs after the 2018 trade actions. California alone lost an estimated $683 million in crop revenue. Nationwide, American farmers lost more than $27 billion in export value from 2018 to 2019.
The bill aims to give farmers more stability in international trade by ensuring that decisions affecting their markets go through Congress before taking effect.