It’s a Christmas miracle! The 2018 Farm Bill is officially law!
President Trump signed the legislation today. The Senate and House passed the bill just within the last week. The legislative victory comes after months of negotiations between lawmakers on both sides.
Today almost didn’t happen. House Republicans hoped for additional work requirements for SNAP beneficiaries. But the Senate’s version of the bill couldn’t pass with those changes. The compromise bill signed into law mostly kept the status quo, both on nutrition and farm policies.
The 2014 Farm Bill expired earlier this fall. Although most programs continued through the end of the year, it was unclear whether Congress would reach an agreement. But as the lame duck session comes to an end, it was clear something had to pass before 2019.
I was skeptical about whether it would actually get done before the year’s end. I’m glad it did. Congress would have struggled to pass such enormous legislation with divided government. And farmers need the certainty that these programs would continue.
Hats off to the bipartisan effort that got the job done.
