Senate Releases Farm Bill Draft

Photo by Ian Wojtak, Wisconsin Farmers Union

On June 23rd 2026, Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman (R-AR) released text of the Agricultural Act of 2026, the Senate’s discussion draft of the 2026 Farm Bill. Chairman Boozman said he expects to hold a markup of his farm bill in late July or early August. This comes after the House Farm Bill, H.R.8467, the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026, was passed in late April. 

The Senate Ag discussion draft text shares many similarities with the House-passed farm bill. Among them, it makes only modest changes to the farm safety net program. Additionally, it does not address several controversial issues. It does not delay the upcoming partial cost shift of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits from the federal government to state governments, authorize year-round E15, or address CA Prop 12. Additionally, neither the Senate nor House bill reinstate mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) for beef. The Senate version, however, does include mandatory COOL for Alaskan king crabs, salmon, and shrimp. It is still possible that Sens. John Thune (R-SD) and/or Cory Booker (D-NJ) will bring amendments to reinstate mandatory COOL for beef, as both senators introduced the American Beef Labeling Act (S.421).

Under dairy safety net programs, the bill also improves the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentive (HFMI) pilot by permitting cheese, yogurt, and additional milk to be eligible, and renames the program as the “Dairy Nutrition Incentive Program.” It also increases authorized funding for Dairy Business Innovation Initiatives to support the development, production, marketing, and distribution of dairy products. Other reauthorized programs include the Dairy Indemnity Payment Program, the Dairy Promotion and Research Board, and the Dairy Forward Pricing Program.

A bright spot for WFU in the Senate bill, like in the House bill, is the proposed authorization of a state-led local and regional food procurement program, similar to the former Local Food Purchase Assistance (LFPA) cooperative agreement program, which USDA defunded in March 2025. National Farmers Union has been working with Congress to permanently authorize and fund a replacement program for LFPA, as well as a replacement program for the Local Food for Schools (LFS) cooperative agreement program (which was also defunded with LFPA). While this provision is based on the Strengthening Local Food Security Act (S.2338), which WFU supported last year at the National Farmers Union Legislative Fly-In, it’s missing key funding components needed to execute the program. 

Over the next month or so, there should be many opportunities to contact your senators about how this legislation could be improved. Even if those changes aren’t made to the bill, Farmers Union leaders have an opportunity to continue to make the case for major reforms to farm bill programs. If you feel passionate about this work, consider applying to attend this year’s National Fly-In, happening in Washington, D.C. September 14-16th.