House Passes Farm Bill with Cuts to Food Assistance Programs
House Republicans push through agriculture legislation despite Democratic opposition, setting up Senate showdown over food assistance cuts.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. House approved a five-year farm bill Thursday by a vote of 224-200, advancing legislation that would authorize agricultural subsidies and nutrition assistance programs through fiscal 2031 after three years of temporary extensions.
The measure faces an uncertain future in the Senate, which has not yet introduced its own version of the comprehensive agriculture and nutrition policy legislation.
Most Democrats opposed the bill, though 14 voted in favor while three Republicans voted against it. Six members did not vote on the measure.
Cross-Party Support and Opposition
The Democrats who supported the legislation included Representatives Sanford Bishop of Georgia, Jim Costa and Adam Gray of California, Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez of Texas, Sharice Davids of Kansas, Donald Davis of North Carolina, Marcy Kaptur of Ohio, Kristen McDonald Rivet of Michigan, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and Kim Schrier of Washington, Josh Riley of New York, Darren Soto of Florida and Gabe Vasquez of New Mexico.
Three Republicans broke ranks to vote against the bill: Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Andrew Garbarino of New York and Harriet Hageman of Wyoming.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated an earlier version of the bill would not meaningfully affect discretionary federal spending over an 11-year window, and would add $162 million in mandatory spending over the next six years.
Limited Policy Changes
House Republicans characterized the legislation as a “skinny” version of the traditional farm bill, with fewer major policy updates than previous iterations. The reduced scope stems from massive spending and tax cuts legislation passed by Republicans last year that already modified some U.S. Department of Agriculture programs.
Those changes primarily affected the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which helped approximately one in eight Americans afford groceries in 2024.
Arkansas Republican Senator John Boozman, who chairs the Senate Agriculture Committee, praised the House passage and indicated his chamber would release its version soon.
Senate Action Expected
“This is a step toward updating long-overdue policies that support our farm families and strengthen rural communities,” Boozman said in a statement Thursday. “We’ve put more farm in the farm bill through the Working Families Tax Cuts, and this legislation builds on that success.”
Boozman said a Senate text would be released “in the coming weeks,” though he provided no specific timeline for floor consideration.
The farm bill traditionally addresses both agricultural subsidies for farmers and nutrition assistance programs for low-income Americans. Previous versions of the legislation have required extensive negotiations between rural and urban lawmakers to balance competing priorities.
Farm bills typically expire every five years, requiring Congress to either pass new comprehensive legislation or approve temporary extensions to prevent program lapses. The current authorization has been extended multiple times since its original expiration.
