Farm Bill Impact Series No. Five-Year Farm Bill

Floor Speech

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Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss the importance of reauthorizing a 5-year farm bill. America's farmers, ranchers, and agricultural producers deserve it; America's food and national security depend on it; and Congress must deliver it.

It has been said that the farm bill is like a Swiss Army knife: It does a little bit of everything. This 5-year bill tackles the whole scope of American food and agriculture policy, addressing things like how we conserve our resources to how we support research from our land grant universities to how we keep people fed.

Since it is a 5-year bill, the farm bill is long enough to provide certainty to ag producers, and it is short enough for Congress to respond to market changes and strengthen the farm safety net accordingly.

The farmers, ranchers, and agricultural producers that provide us all with food, fuel, and fiber deserve a 5-year bill. The last farm bill was signed into law on December 20, 2018. That legislation was put in place to respond to the needs of producers at that time.

Since 2018, a lot has changed. We had a global pandemic that devastated the supply chain. War broke out between Russia and Ukraine, one of the top wheat-producing countries in the world. The Biden administration's failed trade agenda and delayed appointment of trade officials resulted in unprecedented market fluctuation. The list goes on and on, and we haven't even mentioned inflation or drought conditions yet.

Since 2018, when the last farm bill was signed, input costs on the farm have skyrocketed. At one point in 2022, when inflation was at its worst, fertilizer prices were up 222 percent, and diesel fuel prices were up 115 percent. For the producers whose operations even survived through that time, they are still shouldering the burden of an 80 percent increase in fertilizer costs compared to 2018 and diesel that costs $4.50 per gallon today compared to $3 per gallon in 2018. If you hear people talking about how input costs and inflation are coming down, it is an illusion if you compare it to 2018 when Congress signed the last farm bill.

Our national and global security depend on a new farm bill. Ninety years ago, Congress recognized the importance of protecting and strengthening America's food security, on which our national security depends. That is why the farm bill exists.

We cannot afford to have ag producers going out of business because of one bad crop year. Crop insurance helps us avoid that, and this year's wheat harvest in Kansas is a perfect example of why the program is so important.

In 2023, drought and market conditions caused producers to abandon the highest number of acres of wheat since World War I. Right now, crop insurance is helping thousands of producers keep their operations afloat until next year when they roll the dice again with Mother Nature and put their livelihoods on the line, all so that we can have stocked grocery shelves.

Crop insurance is one of the most successful public-private partnerships we have. I have said all along that my top priority for the farm bill is to strengthen and maintain it. If we make any changes to crop insurance, we need to use a scalpel and not a sledgehammer. It is the most cost-effective way to deliver a safe, steady, robust food supply.

Trade and trade promotion also help America remain competitive and secure, and our trade programs are authorized through the farm bill. Back in February, I introduced the Agriculture Export Promotion Act, which would allocate additional resources to the Market Access Program and the Foreign Market Development Cooperator Program for 5 years.

Trade programs, which have longstanding records of success in America, represent the partnership between the public and private sectors of our country. These programs are essential because they spearhead innovative market access and new market development and promote agricultural sales overseas.

Between 1977 and 2019, USDA export promotion programs added 13.7 percent of additional export revenue, or nearly $648 billion, to the value of U.S. agricultural exports. These programs also created almost a quarter of a million American jobs between 2012 and 2019 alone.

The return on investment from private-sector contributions, which accounted for roughly 75 percent of export promotion between 2013 to 2019, is unparalleled. They must be addressed in a 5-year farm bill.

American agricultural producers already face endless hurdles as they work tirelessly to feed, fuel, and clothe the world, and a 5-year farm bill is our chance to support them with the tools they need to protect the future of America's food and agriculture.

As we work toward this, Congress must be brave enough to have difficult conversations and make smart compromises. If we aren't willing to do that, American agricultural producers will suffer the consequences.

If you think about a safety net, the higher the risk, the higher the fall, and the stronger the safety net that you need to survive. Producers' risk levels are at an all-time high because of inflation and input costs, which have shrunk their margins dramatically.

The livelihoods of American producers and consumers are on the line right now, and that means our food security and national security are on the line, too. America's farmers, ranchers, and agricultural producers need certainty like never before, and Congress must deliver for them with a 5-year farm bill.

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