This week, more than 250 organizations, including ASA, sent a letter today to House and Senate agriculture committee members and leadership advocating passage of a five-year farm bill as soon as possible. The groups are urging Congress to move forward on a unified farm bill that preserves a five-year authorization for all programs, while continuing the partnership between the nutrition and farm communities. Additionally, the groups expressed concern that replacement of permanent law would further impede the farm bill process.

“For decades, the threat of reinstatement of the long-outdated policies of the 1938 and 1949 acts have served as strong motivation for Congress to enact new farm bills,” the groups wrote in the letter. “Repealing those acts and making the 2013 farm bill commodity title permanent law could make it difficult to generate sufficient political pressure to adjust the commodity safety net provisions should conditions in production agriculture change. If this should occur and we revert to permanent law, then programs covering conservation, forestry, research, energy, rural development, horticulture, trade, etc., could be left to the will of the appropriations process, likely with limited funding and little opportunity to update or adjust to meet changing needs in agriculture and rural communities.”

The groups also called for the reunification of the farm and food bills in the House, representing the partnership that has sustained the farm bill in previous incarnations. “We also fear that a farm bill without a meaningful nutrition title will make it difficult, if not impossible, for the House and Senate to reach a bipartisan agreement on a final version that can be signed by the president.”

For a full copy of the letter, please click here.