That all this is done at taxpayer expense is testimony to the strength of the livestock industry's political clout. Federal land forage is controlled by a relatively small number of large operators. The largest 24.4 percent of ranchers holding Forest Service permits control 79 percent of the forage. The other end of the permit holder spectrum is dominated by small ranchers, many of whom are waging a losing battle to remain economically viable. Although many are abandoning ranching, their grazing permits are often not retired but consolidated into the holdings of corporate ranchers.
Federal taxes subsidize ranchers.
Other investigators claim that total subsidies are much larger.