1. Farm Bill
Williamson
The most significant piece of legislation that affects agriculture policy is the Farm Bill.

2. The Agricultural Act of 2014
Bill that guides food and farm policy
Covers a variety of areas from subsidies to rural internet access
First passed in 1933
Renewed every 5-6 years
The Agricultural Act of 2014 (AKA Farm Bill) is important legislation that provides authorization for services and programs that impact every American and millions of people around the world. The new Farm Bill builds on historic economic gains in rural America over the past five years, while achieving meaningful reform and billions of dollars in savings for the taxpayer.
The Farm Bill is a massive piece of legislation that guides food and farm policy. It covers wide-ranging topics from rural broadband service to farm subsidy payments. The most recent version of the Farm Bill contains 12 distinct titles, or various sections under which Farm Bill supports are organized. They include: commodity, conservation, trade, nutrition, credit, rural development, research, forestry, energy, horticulture, crop insurance, and miscellaneous (yes, its actual title is miscellaneous).
The first Farm Bill was passed in 1933 during the Great Depression to help increase low crop prices and address massive soil losses from the Dust Bowl. Since then, subsequent legislation was enacted sporadically until Farm Bills were passed in more regular intervals beginning in 1965.
The Farm Bill is normally renewed once every five to six years leading some to argue that it focuses on short-term as opposed to long-term policy issues. The most recent Farm Bills were passed in 1985, 1990, 1996, 2002, 2008, and Farm legislation generally expires at the end of fiscal or crop (calendar) years, but since some programs retain permanent status, they continue indefinitely unless modified or deauthorized by Congress. Those with permanent status include crop insurance, farm subsidy, nutrition, and some conservation programs. Most of these programs are authorized to receive mandatory funding which, unlike discretionary funding, does not have to be approved by Congress on an annual basis. When a Farm Bill is passed, lawmakers place spending caps on discretionary programs and sometimes also limit the amount of mandatory funding that can be spent.
If lawmakers fail to pass new farm legislation or an extension of previous law, policies would revert to permanent law from the Agriculture Adjustment Act of 1938 and the Agricultural Act of This is because when modern-day Farm Bills are enacted, lawmakers do not repeal outdated laws and programs, but merely temporarily suspend permanent law for the life of the new Farm Bill. If permanent law went into effect, parity prices for loan programs would provide high price guarantees for growers of many commodity crops. But since certain crops like soybeans, peanuts, and pulse crops were not eligible for these programs in the s, they would lose lucrative subsidies. Consumers would also pay more for milk since government policies would greatly inflate the price received by milk producers.

3. What does the farm bill cover?
Commodity (crops)
Conservation (wetlands)
Nutrition (School Lunch, Food Stamps)
Rural Development (Electricity, Internet)
Research (Extension Programs)
Forestry (Forest Restoration)
Energy (Ethanol)
Horticulture (Organic and specialty crops)
Crop Insurance (Reduces Costs)
Miscellaneous (Beginning Farmer Programs)
Commodity: crop-specific subsidies for specified crops such as grain, oilseeds, cotton, and rice (through price supports, marketing loan and disaster payments, and shallow loss subsidies) and other industry-specific programs for milk and sugar
Conservation: conservation standards and payments for land stewardship and other conservation practices
Nutrition: domestic nutrition assistance programs like food stamps, emergency assistance, and healthy food initiatives V. Credit: subsidized direct loans and loan guarantees for agricultural producers
Rural development: programs to boost rural economic development and subsidize rural housing, utilities, and broadband internet
Research: spending on agricultural, food safety, and biotech research and extension programs
Forestry: programs for forest protection, stewardship, and restoration
Energy: subsidies for corn ethanol and next-generation biofuels, other forms of renewable energy, and energy efficiency initiatives X. Horticulture: programs for organic agriculture and specialty crops (like fruits, vegetables, and nuts)
Crop Insurance: insurance premium subsidies for crop and livestock producers and administrative and operating subsidies for crop insurance companies, among others
Miscellaneous: provisions related to socially disadvantaged farmers, livestock programs, and other miscellaneous topics
Under miscellaneous…the farm bill offers youth loans, students ages can apply for a small loan (up to $5000) to get started in farming.
The following pdf from the USDA provides information on the areas more specifically.

4. Crop Commodity Programs
The Agriculture Act of 2014 (AKA Farm Bill) provides benefits based on price or revenue targets for producers of corn and other feed grains, wheat, rice, soybeans and other oilseeds, peanuts, and pulses. These are called “covered commodities” in the Farm Bill.
Farm Bill also provides marketing assistance loans for covered commodities, cotton, wool, mohair, and honey producers. Non-recourse loans, marketing allotments, and other provisions are provided for sugar producers.

5. Dairy and Livestock
The 2014 Farm Bill provides support to dairy producers through two new programs and to livestock operations through disaster assistance programs.
Highlights
The Margin Protection Program (MPP) for dairy producers introduces an insurance program that provides benefits to dairy producers when the difference between milk prices and feed costs falls below a target margin.
The Dairy Product Donation Program (DPDP) requires the Secretary of Agriculture to purchase dairy products at market prices for donation to nutrition programs whenever the margin between milk prices and feed prices falls below the minimum margin specified under the MPP.
The Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP), Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP), and Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP)—providing protection against losses from natural disasters, including disease

6. Conservation
The Farm Bill provides assistance to producers and landowners to adopt conservation activities on agricultural and forest lands to protect and improve water quality and quantity, soil health, wildlife habitat and air quality.
Highlights
Emphasis on conservation on working lands
Gradually reduces Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) cap from 32 million acres to 24 million acres by 2017.
Consolidates many conservation programs into new programs or merges them into existing programs, reducing the number of USDA conservation programs from 23 to 13.
Re-links crop insurance premium subsidies to Conservation Compliance (conservation of highly erodible land and wetlands) for the first time since 1996.

7. Nutrition
Reauthorizes the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Nation’s largest food and nutrition assistance program. Provides additional SNAP funding for enhanced employment and training activities, increased healthy food options, and expanded anti-fraud efforts.
Highlights
Provides funding to develop and test methods to increase employment of SNAP recipients, and imposes new requirements to evaluate and regularly report on outcomes of State SNAP Employment and Training Programs.
Increases healthy food options of SNAP participants by requiring a larger variety of food options at authorized retailers and establishing a grant program to provide incentives for the purchase of fruits and vegetables by SNAP recipients.
Enhances SNAP integrity by using improved information technologies to expand efforts to combat fraud and verify participant eligibility and income.

8. Rural Development
Provides for rural community and economic development program planning, coordination, and implementation
covers rural broadband investments, including distance learning and telemedicine
water and waste water treatment facilities
value-added agricultural activities, including renewable energy and locally and regionally produced agricultural products
General business assistance; chronically underserved rural communities
financing for essential community facilities, including schools, hospitals, and public safety.

9. Research, Extension and Related Matters
2014 Farm BIll authorizes funding for research, extension, and education—including competitive grants and capacity funding (i.e., awarded by formula) to Land Grant institutions and State agricultural experiment stations, and intramural funding for USDA research agencies; identifies high-priority research areas and new research initiatives.
Highlights
The Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research is a new nonprofit institution to foster research and technology transfer through public-private collaborations.
The 2014 Farm Act broadens support for animal health and disease research and veterinary services.
Mandatory funding for specialty crops research and extension will increase
High-priority research areas include pulses, coffee plants, corn and soy meal and other grain byproducts, and food safety training. Pollinator research is expanded to include health and population surveillance and a broader definition of pollinator disorders.

10. Energy
The 2014 Farm Bill encourages investments in alternative energy technology and production of renewable biomass for biofuels through education, research, and financial assistance programs; encourages the manufacture and production of other renewable biochemical and biobased products through Federal procurement and financial assistance programs.

11. Crop Insurance
The 2014 Farm Bill provides new and continuing insurance products to protect producers against losses resulting from price and yield risks. Under the Federal crop insurance program, private-sector insurance companies sell and service the policies, and USDA’s Risk Management Agency develops and/or approves the premium rate, administers premium and expense subsidies, approves and supports products, and reinsures the companies.

12. Specialty Crops Highlights
The 2014 Farm Bill provides incentives for marketing and promotion of horticulture crops, data and information collection, plant pest and disease management, food safety education, and programs to facilitate the inclusion of fruits and vegetables in school feeding programs.
Highlights
Reauthorizes specialty crop block grants with increased funding and extends to include authorization for multi-State projects, with the amount of grants to a State based on production value and acreage.
Expands the Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) and the Farmers Market and Local Foods Promotion programs.
Expands the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program for schools; a pilot program will evaluate inclusion of canned, frozen, or dried fruits and vegetables in the program.

13. Organic Agriculture Highlights
The 2014 Farm Bill aims to support the organic sector by expanding cost-share assistance for organic certification, maintaining the organic agricultural research initiative, and improving organic crop insurance and marketing programs.
Highlights
Substantially expands funding to assist organic producers and handlers with the cost of organic certification.
Requires improvements in crop insurance for organic producers and strengthens enforcement of organic regulations.

14. Local and Regional Foods
2014 Farm Bill provides support across several titles of the farm bill for increased consumer access to and marketing of locally and regionally produced food.
Highlights
Expands the scope, funding, and name of the Farmers’ Market and Local Food Promotion Program to include local and regional food business enterprises.
Creates a new program to provide grants to organizations that encourage fruit and vegetable consumption by SNAP recipients through increasing their purchasing power. Includes a preference for projects involving local food and direct-to-consumer sales venues.

15. Beginning Farmers and Ranchers
2014 Farm Bill provides support to beginning farmers and ranchers in agriculture by increasing funding for beginning farmer development, facilitating farmland transition to the next generation of farmers, and improving outreach and communication to military veterans about farming and ranching opportunities.

16. Socially Disadvantaged and Veteran Farmers and Ranchers
2014 Farm Bill provides support to socially disadvantaged and veteran farmers through increased funding for beginning farmer development; incentives for retiring farmers to sell or lease land coming out of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) to veteran farmers and ranchers; and improved outreach and communication to military veterans about farming and ranching opportunities.

17. How is the money divided?
79% Nutrition
14% Commodity and Crop Insurance
6% Conservation
1% all of the other seven categories
The farm bill is a large piece of legislation. It is also a very expensive piece of legislation, it is estimated to cost 956 billion dollars.
The most costly sections of the Farm Bill, ordered from most to least expensive, include the following:  Nutrition (80% of funding)  Commodity (crop-specific subsidies) and federal crop insurance (14%)  Conservation (6%)  Everything else (trade, energy, horticulture, research, rural development, etc.) (1%)
So even though the farm bill costs is a lot of money, a majority of the money does not actually go to agriculture and farming. Approximately 756 billion dollars will be spent on Nutrition programs, including subsidizing school lunch and the SNAP (food stamp) programs.

18. Sources