The farm bill
On June 21, the Senate passed a five-year, half-trillion-dollar farm bill that cuts farm subsidies and land conservation spending by about $2bn a year but largely protects sugar growers and some 46m food stamp beneficiaries.
The biggest change comes from eliminating direct payments to farmers whether they plant crops or not. That subsidy, and a separate one where the government sets target prices and pays farmers when prices go below that level, will be replaced. There will be greater reliance on crop insurance and a new program that covers smaller losses on planted crops before crop insurance kicks in.
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