Senate hearing: farm groups and lawmakers press for swift 2025 farm bill with higher reference prices and stronger crop insurance

Chairman Bozeman convened the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee hearing and opened with a warning that ‘‘since 2022, producers have lost more than $50,000,000,000 in net income,’’ framing testimony from commodity and farm‑group leaders who urged rapid passage of a modernized five‑year farm bill.

The hearing brought a unified message from farm leaders across commodities: producers need immediate, multi‑year certainty and stronger Title I support, including higher PLC reference prices, expanded and more affordable crop insurance, and other risk‑management reforms that take effect for the 2025 crop year.

Why it matters: witnesses said sharply lower commodity prices, sustained high input costs and rising interest rates have created narrow or negative margins that threaten family farms, rural economies and the U.S. food supply. Multiple witnesses said temporary emergency aid passed in December provided relief but cannot substitute for a multiyear safety net.

Topline testimony and details: Zippy Duvall, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, told the committee that farm sector forecasts showed a $41,000,000,000 decline in net farm income and urged maintaining a ‘‘unified farm bill’’ that preserves nutrition and farm programs together and prioritizes risk management including crop insurance. ‘‘Crop insurance is the cornerstone of the farm bill,’’ Duvall said, adding that every farm—organic or conventional, large or small—needs access to risk‑management tools.

Kenneth (Kenny) Hartman Jr., president of the National Corn Growers Association, testified that average corn prices have fallen about 40% since 2022 while costs have fallen only about 6%, leaving producers facing per‑acre losses; he urged protecting federal crop insurance and strengthening the producer safety net.

Nathan Reed of the National Cotton Council urged a ‘‘significant increase in the PLC reference price,’’ modernization of marketing assistance loans and improved access to individual and area‑wide insurance products. Reed said bankers want ‘‘long term solutions’’ rather than ad hoc aid.

Commodity groups reiterated several recurring asks in witnesses’ written and oral statements: raise PLC reference prices to better reflect current costs of production, preserve and expand crop insurance affordability and coverage (including higher subsidy assistance and additional products such as area‑based or revenue insurance where appropriate), and move quickly so reforms apply in the 2025 crop year.

Clarifying context: witnesses cited specific figures on the sector downturn (committee opening remarks and written testimony): producers’ net income losses since 2022 (more than $50 billion), USDA forecasts of a $41 billion drop in farm sector income, and commodity price declines since 2022 (examples cited: corn and wheat down about 37%, soybeans down about 28%, cotton down about 22%, per witnesses’ statements). Several witnesses noted that these statistics vary by region and commodity and asked Congress to target reforms accordingly.

Outlook and next steps: witnesses asked the committee to move bipartisan authorizing legislation and to ensure that any reforms take effect for the 2025 crop year so lenders, producers and input suppliers can plan. Committee members repeatedly said they want to produce a bipartisan five‑year farm bill that maintains the coalition of conservation, nutrition, research and commodity programs that has historically produced farm bills.

Ending: Witnesses and senators emphasized the urgency. ‘‘If Congress does not act quickly to provide an adequate safety net,’’ Nathan Reed said, ‘‘I will be forced to answer difficult questions about putting my family’s future at risk.’’ The committee recessed for additional panels and follow‑up questions as leaders signaled intent to pursue a new farm bill this year.