U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) strongly condemned the Agricultural Committee Chairwoman for posting the Farm Bill text just weeks before Congress is set to adjourn.
U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) released her draft “Rural Prosperity and Food Security Act” Monday.
“The foundation of every successful farm bill is built on holding together the broad, bipartisan farm bill coalition,” Stabenow said. “This is a strong bill that invests in all of agriculture, helps families put food on the table, supports rural prosperity and holds that coalition together.”
The 2018 Farm Bill expired in September 2023 and was extended for one year through September 2024. Some programs have stopped because they didn’t pass a new bill before the expiration. Most of the farm bill benefits will cease after Dec. 31 without another extension or passage of a new bill.
Tuberville, who is a member of the Agriculture Committee, criticized the bill as too little, too late.
“For 415 days, Democrats have drug their feet while farmers, foresters, and producers struggled to survive in Kamala Harris and Joe Biden’s economy,” Tuberville said in a statement. “Many of our family farmers had to make the difficult decision to put their combines and tractors up for good because of their inability to make ends meet.”
The senator also argued that the bill does not address the issue of inflation in the industry.
“The Farm Bill proposal that Senate Democrats released today does not adequately address the needs that farmers, foresters, and producers have, including a mere 5% increase in reference prices for commodity programs,” he argued. “Food security is national security, and we cannot afford to lose any more farmers. America’s farmers work hard to feed, fuel, and clothe our nation. They deserve to be a priority—not an afterthought. We will make our hardworking producers a priority next Congress when Republicans will control both the House and Senate.”
