Improving the federal crop insurance program is the goal of new legislation that has been introduced this week in the U.S. Senate.
U.S. Senator John Hoeven (R-ND), a senior member of the Senate Agriculture Committee and Ranking Member of the Senate Agricultural Appropriations Committee, has introduced the Federal Agriculture Risk Management Enhancement and Resilience Act—or FARMER Act.
Hoeven says the legislation will strengthen crop insurance and make higher levels of coverage more affordable for producers across the country.
Specifically, Hoeven’s legislation, which he is working to include in the Farm Bill, would seek to:
- Increase premium support for higher levels of crop insurance coverage, which will enhance affordability and reduce the need for ad-hoc disaster assistance.
- Improve the Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO) by increasing premium support and expanding the coverage level, providing producers with an additional level of protection.
- Direct the Risk Management Agency (RMA) to conduct a study to improve the effectiveness of SCO in large counties.
- Not require producers to choose between purchasing enhanced crop insurance coverage or participating in Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs, giving them flexibility to make decisions that work best for their operations.
Hoeven says the FARMER Act is better for taxpayers too.
“We talk about a Farm Bill being for farmers and ranchers, but a good Farm Bill is for every single American,” he says. “Our farmers and ranchers produce the highest-quality, lowest-cost food supply in the world and every American benefits from that every single day. It’s brought to us by our farmers and ranchers. Americans spend less of their budget than any other developed country on their food and they have better food and a better choice. It’s national security—we don’t have to worry about food security.”
Co-sponsors of the bill include Senators John Boozman (R-AR), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Roger Marshall (R-KS) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS).
Among the ag organizations that have given their support of Hoeven’s legislation include the American Soybean Association, National Corn Growers Association, and the National Association of Wheat Growers.
Click HERE for a summary of the bill.
Click HERE for the full text of the bill.
Click BELOW to watch Sen. John Hoeven introduce the FARMER Act.
