Senate Ag Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) wrote a letter to her colleagues on their work to write a new farm bill. She outlined several proposals for strengthening the farm safety net in the new bill.
While calling the 2018 Farm Bill a “strong foundation” for American farmers, she also says, “The 2024 Farm Bill is an opportunity for the Committee to make improvements, modernize dated elements, and address emerging challenges American farmers face.” Her vision for modernizing the safety net centers around principles like programs being targeted to active farmers, providing farmers choice and flexibility, and sending them timely assistance.
She also says officials need to expand the reach of programs to help more farmers and address the emerging risks farmers face. “Crop insurance is a key tool to meaningfully advance each of those goals,” she said in the letter. “Farmers want better affordability and a more straightforward and streamlined process.”
