Grassley predicts one-year extension instead of new Farm Bill

WASHINGTON — Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says he’s predicting an extension of the 2018 Farm Bill will happen later this month instead of the passage of a new Farm Bill.

Grassley predicts there will be a one-year extension since the Senate and House can’t come to an agreement on a new bill. “I applaud the House Agriculture Committee for putting out a bill that solves some of the problems that we can’t get an agreement on in the United States Senate. That main problem is that in the Senate, we can’t reach an agreement that reflects what the House has done in a bipartisan way to make sure that we have the next five-year Farm Bill reflect the inflation in agriculture that is obvious since 2018.”

Grassley says he’s heard a lot of concern about the Farm Bill legislation and he hopes something can get done this month.  “I agree with all the people who were at the Farm Progress Show that we need a new five-year Farm Bill, but when we don’t get a new five-year Farm Bill as happens so many times in the last 50 years, we do another one-year extension, and I think that’s going to happen in the continuing resolution before September 30th.”

Grassley says a new bill needs to deal with a number of inflationary issues.  “Like an increase in biodiesel, interest rates, parts for your farm machinery repair, seed, chemical fertilizer. There’s a 20% increase in the House bill. The Democrats don’t want to give a 20% increase in the Senate, and that’s what keeps the bill from passing.”

Congress had voted last November to extend the 2018 Farm Bill, which expired at the end of September of last year. The House version has passed the Ag Committee but has not been voted on by the full House.