The name “farm bill” can be pretty misleading. Most who do not follow agricultural legislation that closely just assume that all of the funding included in the “farm bill” winds up on the farm.
Not even close.
Farm programs only represent about 10% of farm bill spending. The bulk of farm bill spending is earmarked for nutrition programs and the bill’s 15 other sections, such as energy, rural development, and conservation.
Strange Heritage
The Riverwalk was hopping as farmers from across the country descended on San Antonio for the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 90th annual convention this weekend.
The city’s convention center looked like most farm shows. John Deere and Case IH rolled in the big green and red tractors, U.S. automakers showed off the latest pickups, seed and insurance dealers chatted with growers, and the concession stand sold stale hot dogs for $4.00 apiece.
But this year’s show had a new comer—The Heritage Foundation, a large DC think tank with a $61 million budget.
Yes, the same Heritage that’s published nearly 10 anti-farm-bill pieces since 2007—including “Seven Reasons to Veto the Farm Bill” and “The Farm Bill and Other Bad Ideas”—had a booth at the show. Talk about walking into the lion’s den.
The name “farm bill” can be pretty misleading. Most who do not follow agricultural legislation that closely just assume that all of the funding included in the “farm bill” winds up on the farm.
The Riverwalk was hopping as farmers from across the country descended on San Antonio for the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 90th annual convention this weekend.
