The Farm Bill, passed every five years, is the cornerstone of U.S. agricultural policy, encompassing programs ranging from crop insurance to food assistance like SNAP. While it plays an essential role in supporting the agricultural sector, including non-farming programs like SNAP and rural development complicates its purpose and dilutes its focus on farming issues.
Programs such as SNAP should be removed and handled in separate legislation. SNAP is vital for food security, but including it in the Farm Bill forces negotiations and compromises between social and agricultural priorities, often leading to inefficient or unfocused outcomes. With its own dedicated bill, food assistance programs could receive more specialized attention without holding up or diluting agricultural reforms.
Similarly, rural development and non-farm conservation programs could also be addressed separately. These are critical programs, but their inclusion in the Farm Bill shifts focus away from the core agricultural issues the legislation is meant to address. By streamlining the Farm Bill to focus on the direct needs of farmers, we could create more effective, responsive policies that are targeted specifically at supporting the farming community, without the weight of unrelated issues slowing the process down.