Agri-Pulse
Thompson: At least $10B in additional farm aid needed
By Lydia Johnson
Congress needs to provide at least $10 billion in additional aid to farmers to supplement the $12 billion being provided by the Trump administration through its Farmer Bridge Assistance Program, says House Agriculture Committee Chair Glenn “GT” Thompson.
In an interview with Agri-Pulse on Tuesday, Thompson, R-Pa., said lawmakers need to provide payments to sectors such as dairy, timber and specialty crops.
The administration’s program is largely targeted to row crops such as corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton and rice, although $1 billion has been set aside for other commodities.
“I think it [Farmer Bridge Assistance Program payments] will open up opportunities for a lot of farmers and ranchers to get credit for next year, but it's not enough,” Thompson said.
Thompson didn’t provide a timeline for moving a supplemental assistance package in Congress. Lawmakers have been looking at changes to USDA’s Section 32 authority which is funded through customs receipts. Under existing law, Congress couldn’t use Section 32 to spend more than $350 million on payments to farmers.
“It's got to be really just enough to make the bridge sustainable to 2026, but not an overreach. We don't want to replace the market,” Thompson said of a supplemental package.
Separately, Richard Fordyce, under secretary for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Production and Conservation Mission Area, told Agri-Pulse that the agency has no plan to look at providing additional payments.
"USDA is where we are at, and probably will be as far as the level of support," he said, adding that he didn't have insight on what Congress might do.
Deputy Ag Secretary Stephen Vaden was also pressed about the need for an additional farm aid package during an early December interview on Agri-Pulse Newsmakers.
"Obviously if Congress passes a program, we will be happy to work with them on it to provide whatever technical assistance is needed and administer it in Trump time," Vaden said. "But right now we only have these authorities and the monies provided by the Commodity Credit Corporation [for the FBA payments], so that's what we're focusing on because we know that come October of 2026, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act ... kicks in."
Numerous Senate Ag Committee members and farm state lawmakers, including Sens. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., and Steve Daines, R-Mont., told Agri-Pulse last week conversations were already in progress about moving an additional farm aid package in early 2026.
Thompson said he wants to move a new farm bill in January that would reauthorize programs not included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act last July.
Kim Chipman contributed to this report