Agriculture

President-elect Trump’s agriculture policy priorities will likely build upon his first-term approach, focusing on deregulation, reducing government intervention, and supporting U.S. farmers through tax policy, trade, and defense of agricultural interests.

The reauthorization of the existing Farm Bill is still pending before the current Congress. The impasse between the Republican House Agriculture Committee and the Senate Agriculture Committee has persisted for several months since the House Agriculture Committee approved its version of a 5 year Farm Bill extension. Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Debby Stabenow finally released the text of her version of a Farm Bill on Monday, November 18th. Stabenow is retiring at the end of the current Congress, and she had hoped that releasing her text might provoke Republicans to come to the table to negotiate a final Farm Bill extension during the lame-duck session. Her text was released with little warning to Republicans on her Committee, including Ranking Member John Boozman, resulting in his immediate rejection of her approach. Likewise, House Committee Chairman Thompson rejected her approach, stating that it was an effort to salvage her legacy.

Thompson and Speaker Johnson have now indicated they intend to add an amendment to the final Continuing Resolution to fund the government beyond December 20th, including a one-year extension of existing farm programs. The passage of either a new Farm Bill or a second one-year extension of existing law is critical for farmers who will be back in the fields in the first quarter of 2025, preparing for a new crop year, and they need to understand the parameters of federal farm programs.

Of more urgent interest to most Members of Congress is additional emergency disaster funding to help farmers, particularly in the Southeast, who were hit hard by recent hurricanes and other storms. That supplemental funding was the subject of a hearing in the Senate Appropriations Committee on November 20th and is likely to be included with the next Continuing Resolution to fund the government into the first quarter of 2025. 

Many of these changes may be implemented by Executive Order, including an effort to reduce federal environmental regulations, especially those enforced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). A key element of this is the rollback of regulations under laws like the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which many in the farming community see as limiting farm operations. Trump aims to reduce the regulatory burden on farmers, enabling them to operate more freely and profitably. 

A major target for spending cuts by the Trump Administration will be the climate programs contained in the Biden Inflation Reduction Act programs. A large amount of those funds were allocated to the Department of Agriculture to pursue “climate smart” agriculture and forestry practices. Republicans in Congress and the Trump Administration will be looking to zero out the remaining funds in the IRA to cut spending. 

Trump is committed to maintaining the 2017 tax cuts, which provide relief to farmers, particularly in areas like estate taxes, capital gains taxes, and other farm-related property taxes. He has emphasized the importance of these tax provisions in helping farmers, especially those who are “land-rich but cash-poor.” Maintaining these benefits is seen as essential for easing the financial burdens of farm transitions and stabilizing agricultural finances.

Future trade policies of the Trump Administration will have a major impact on farm communities. While Trump has pledged to impose new tariffs on Chinese imports, such actions often harm the U.S. agriculture sector, as China and other countries typically respond by imposing greater tariffs on American agricultural exports. More restrictive immigration policies and mass deportation of undocumented workers will also have significant implications for rural communities where farm workers are often in short supply, particularly if seasonal worker permits are slowed or reduced. 

While President-Elect Trump is very popular in rural America, groups representing American agriculture have reacted warily to the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services.   His stated opposition to using genetically modified seeds and chemical applications to agricultural crops for weed and pest control will undoubtedly concern many farmers and agribusiness groups. Senators from agricultural states will hear those concerns in advance of confirmation hearings for Kennedy.