After a year of intense market volatility, severe weather disasters, and a drastically reduced federal work force, farmers and the American food system at large have been hit hard. We urgently need to pass a farm bill that would offer a new way forward, but we cannot sacrifice quality for expediency.
Members of the House, including 2 California Democrats, voted to move a disappointing draft farm bill to a full chamber vote, and the House will soon be moving this bill to the floor for a full vote. This bill as currently written:
- Makes unnecessary changes to proven, popular, and crucial conservation programs that would further limit how many farmers are able to take advantage of these resources
- Fails to provide funding for local food programs that would build stable domestic markets for farmers, foster local supply chain resiliency, and revitalize both urban and rural communities
- Fails to make common sense improvements that small, beginning, and diversified farmers need to access the safety net across California.
Our state and farmers across the country deserve more than what this farm bill draft offers. We must take action to tell our representatives to vote against its passage. Can you take 60 seconds to call and email your Rep today, urging them to vote NO on the House’s farm bill draft?
CLICK HERE to contact your Rep through NSAC’s action alert.
Want to know more about the House farm bill draft? Check out this blog from our friends at the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) for an analysis of each title.