What Is a Farm Bill?

1. What Is a Farm Bill? • Joe’s Long Definition • Shorter Definition • Tells USDA what to do, how to do it, who to do it for, and for how long • Ex. Provide food assistance with food stamps to poor for the period 2002 to 2007. • Each farm bill has a varying length with an expiration date. • Recent farm bills • 1985, 1990, 19951996, 2002

2. What Is the CCC? • Commodity Credit Corporation

3. Major Commodities We Typically Have Had Programs For • Wheat • Feed Grains (corn, grain sorghum, barley, and oats) • Upland cotton • Rice • Oilseeds (soybeans, sunflower seed, rapeseed, canola, safflower, flaxseed, and mustard seed) • Sugar • Tobacco • Peanuts • Dairy Products (milk, butter, cheese, and NFDM) • Wool and Mohair • Honey • Fruits and Vegetables

4. 1990 Farm Bill XVI Research XVII Food Stamp and Related Provisions XVIII Credit XIX Agricultural Promotion XX Grain Quality XXI Organic Certification XXII Crop Insurance and Disaster Assistance XXIII Rural Development XXIV Global Climate Change XXV Other Related Provisions • Titles I Dairy II Wool and Mohair III Wheat IV Feed Grains V Cotton VI Rice VII Oilseeds VIII Peanuts IX Sugar X Honey XI General Commodity Provisions XII State and Private Forestry XIII Fruits, Vegetables, and Marketing XIV Conservation XV Agricultural Trade Last farm bill to contain supply mgmt provisions for crops

5. Major Commodity Tools in the 1990 Farm Bill • Program Crops (wheat, feedgrains, cotton, rice, and minor oilseeds) • Soybeans – • Wool and Mohair – • Dairy – • Peanuts – • Fruits and vegetables –

6. Crop Policy Tools • Target Prices • Nonrecourse loan and marketing loan rates • Set-aside/Acreage Reduction Programs • Deficiency Payments (By program crop) • DP = TP - higher of {LR or MP} x [crop base acreage x (1-ARP%)] x farm program yield • Had to plant the program crop to receive payment for that crop