Ag lobbyist Randy Russell says not much progress has been made on the new farm bill in the U.S. House or Senate.

“The leadership ultimately has to get into a room and each give a little bit if we’re going to get a compromise.”

Russell says House Ag Committee leadership is still trying to secure bipartisan support for the bill passed in committee last month and Senate Ag Committee leaders are far apart on how to fund more farm in the farm bill.

He says there are three areas of the bill that need a compromise, starting with the nutrition title and then “the $20 billion that was included in the Inflation Reduction Act and then, thirdly, the title one updates on crop insurance and reference prices where significant updates are proposed.”

He says there aren’t many legislative days left on the calendar between now and October and it’s likely the current farm bill will require another extension.

And while a new farm bill can be passed in a Lame Duck session of Congress in December “what happens there is contingent on who is in the White House, who controls the Senate and the House following the election.”

Russell is an ag lobbyist for the Russell Group in Washington D.C.

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