Scott wants farm bill but two-year extension in the mix
| In a memo to fellow Democrats on the House Agriculture Committee this week, Rep. David Scott, D-Ga., the ranking member on the committee, said he is trying to work with House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson, R-Pa., Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., and Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., the ranking member on the Senate Agriculture Committee, to pass a five-year farm bill this year. But Scott also said some of the farmers he met with this week “want us to consider doing a two-year ad hoc package that would bolster the safety net for 2024 and 2025 crop years.” |
| He did not say which farmers proposed the two-year extension. Scott said he hopes that Democrats and Republicans can reach agreement on “broad funding parameters before members leave in September. “Such an agreement on a farm bill, Scott said, would allow staff to “pull together a broad package of legislative text” that could be included in the lame duck in “must-pass legislation” such as the National Defense Authorization Act or an appropriations omnibus package. Waiting until next year, Scott said, would put the farm bill in competition for floor time and resources with legislation dealing with the expiration of tax cuts and the debt ceiling. |
