Congressional leadership released a 1,547 page draft of a continuing resolution (CR) which includes $10 billion in economic assistance for farmers, a one-year extension of the 2018 farm bill, and funding for the government through March 14^th, 2025. The economic assistance for farmers follows the payment mechanism laid out by the Farmer Revenue Assistance Mitigation (FARM) Act introduced by Congressman Trent Kelly (R-MS-01). The payment, outlined on pages 34-41 of the CR, is based on three key variables: national season-average price reported, 10-year national average yield, and 2024 cost of production.

Two key elements of this payment mechanism differ from the FARM Act: the payment factor and minimum payment calculation. The payment factor has been reduced to 26% of the estimated economic loss from the 60% factor in the FARM Act. However, a minimum payment has been included which is to be the product of 8% of the 2014 statutory reference price and the national average PLC payment yield. Among nine program crops relevant to southeastern states, three should expect to see the minimum payment be greater than the estimated payment (see Table 1). These crops include barley ($22.60/acre), peanuts ($76.48/acre), and rice ($69.76/acre). The other six program crops considered will receive the estimated payment per acre and include corn ($43.80/acre), cotton ($84.70/acre), grain sorghum ($41.85/acre), oats ($80.14/acre), soybeans ($30.61/acre), and wheat ($31.80/acre). See a full breakdown of the payment calculations by crop in Table 1 below.

Table 1. Estimated Economic Assistance Payments from the DRAFT December 2024 Continuing Resolution

While this has generated much interest over the past 24 hours, the CR has not passed. The deadline to pass a funding bill to avoid a government shutdown is Friday, December 20^th. This implies that Congress has about two days to put together a package which will pass. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA-04) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) have both voiced support for economic assistance to farmers both immediately and in farm bill negotiations in 2025. However, there has been opposition from GOP hardliners who have voiced frustration over not pushing funding issues to 2025 when the new administration takes office (Agri-Pulse). Economic assistance seems likely, but we will not know with full certainty until the bill passes.

Other resources

Southern Ag Today (Fischer and Outlaw): https://southernagtoday.org/2024/10/24/economic-assistance-for-the-2024-crop-year-starting-to-take-shape/



ProFarmer: https://www.profarmer.com/news/policy-update/preliminary-assessment-ag-payments-cr-national-cotton-council