Should the farm crisis continue or even worsen, there are some in Washington D.C. who say it may be necessary to do a farm bill a year early, with the regular deadline for a new Farm Bill set for September of 2018. House Ag Committee ranking member Collin Peterson said it’s something that may have to happen. Peterson said if there’s a real crisis this winter with farmers unable to get financing and bankers up in arms, “Does it make sense to do a Band-Aid or admit that the safety net in the 2014 bill is inadequate and try to fix it?” He said it depends on how bad things actually get. While Peterson readies for the worst, other farm state lawmakers are hoping the safety net programs in the 2014 farm bill can help carry producers through low prices, soaring production domestically and abroad, and weak global demand. Politico’s Morning Agriculture Report said interviews with key lawmakers showed skepticism about even getting the 2018 bill done on time as the last one took an extra year to get approved.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting news service.