Mississippi farmers could soon see relief as the U.S. House advanced a sweeping farm bill Thursday, with most of the state’s delegation backing the measure.
The House voted 224-200 on the Farm, Food, and National Security Act, sending it to the Senate for consideration. Mississippi Republican Reps. Michael Guest, Trent Kelly, and Mike Ezell voted in favor of it, while Rep. Bennie Thompson did not join 14 of his fellow Democrats in the mostly GOP-powered vote.
“This long-awaited legislation will support our farmers and ranchers and secure the notion that food security is national security,” Guest said. “If we want to remain the most powerful nation in the world, we must control the basics – our land, our food, and our livelihoods. That’s why I am proud to support the farm bill.”
According to AgWeb, the $390 billion farm bill “offers a roadmap for the next five years of American agriculture” with “extensive updates to food and agriculture programs in a budget-neutral package.” Farm bills were once passed every five years with broad bipartisan support, but per the New York Times, political polarization has resulted in an impasse since 2018. Since then, lawmakers have chosen to extend that bill on a yearly basis.
At a time when farmers in Mississippi and nationwide are faced with mounting challenges – such as high diesel costs spurred by conflict with Iran, ongoing trade and material uncertainty enhanced by tariffs, and sharp drop-offs in grain prices – the bill intends to give producers both short- and long-term relief. Key components include a subsidy boost by $60 billion, expansion of crop insurance and risk management tools, and an increase in loan limits.
Mike McCormick is the president of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation, which often advocates for local producers in political settings. After the vote, he commended the state’s Republicans who voted for it and said it will help the state’s top industry steady in the present and strengthen in the future.
“The passage of the [farm bill] means two things to Mississippi’s farmers and ranchers: certainty and clarity,” McCormick said. “Certainty that producers will be given the tools to survive today’s challenges and clarity for their operations as they plan into the future.”
The bill also expands rural broadband access and extends authorization for conservation programs, agricultural research, and rural development grants.
One point of contention that led most Democrats to vote against the bill is its retention of $187 billion in cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or food stamps, included in Trump’s tax cut and domestic policy package signed into law this summer.
Also SNAP-related, the bill allows for recipients to purchase hot rotisserie chicken with benefits but failed to ban the purchase of sodas with benefits. In October, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves requested a waiver from the federal government for the state to be able to ban junk food purchases with SNAP benefits while allowing for hot rotisserie chicken to be purchased.
The farm bill now heads to the Senate, where McCormick is “confident” Mississippi’s representation will support it. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, a Republican who serves on the Senate Agriculture Committee, posted on X shortly after the House vote that she and other committee members will work “to get something done on our side of the Hill so we can get to conference to turn out a good final product.”
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