The current five-year omnibus Farm Bill expires in 2023. It used to be the painful and frustrating gestation of a five-year Farm Bill was the ultimate manifestation of “sausage-making,” as politicos over the centuries have described the imprecise act of making law. It’s true, COVID 19 economic mitigation is giving the Farm Bill a run for its money, but already there’s talk about new “Farm Bill issues” — to be dealt with in 2021.
Take it as the latest example of the craziness that is the year 2020, but there are several members of Congress from both sides of the aisle in both chambers – no doubt blinded by the upcoming election or who’ve never been through a Farm Bill evolution – who advocate the process of rewriting the current $900-billion Farm Bill should begin early in the new Congress in the 117th Congress.
