The 2014 Farm Bill (P.L. 113-79): Summary and Side-by-Side
Released: 2014-02-12T00:00:00

Introduction and Chronology

Congress periodically establishes agricultural and food policy in an omnibus farm bill. Following nearly three years of debate, Congress completed action in February 2014 on the most recent farm bill (The Agricultural Act of 2014 (P.L. 113-78), which succeeded the expired Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (2008 farm bill, P.L. 110-246). The 2014 farm bill establishes policy for the next five years in its 12 titles, covering farm commodity price and income support, crop insurance, conservation, domestic food assistance, agricultural trade and international food aid, credit, rural development, research, horticulture, forestry, and bioenergy, among others. Periodic farm bills provide Congress, the Administration, and interest groups with an opportunity to reexamine agriculture and food issues more carefully, and address them more comprehensively.

Within the various titles of the enacted 2014 farm bill are provisions that reshape the structure of farm commodity support, expand crop insurance coverage, consolidate conservation programs, reauthorize and revise nutrition assistance, and extend authority to appropriate funds for many U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) discretionary programs through FY2018.

Many provisions of the previous farm bill (P.L. 110-246) expired in 2012, but were extended for an additional year in the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 ( P.L. 112-240 , the fiscal cliff bill). The 112 th Congress began work on a new farm bill but did not complete action before the conclusion of the Congress, requiring new bills to be introduced in the 113 th Congress. The House and Senate Agriculture Committees marked up their respective bills in May 2013 and floor action was completed in the summer months. A conference agreement was reached in late January 2014; it was approved by both chambers within eight days and was signed into law as the Agricultural Act of 2014 ( P.L. 113-79 ) on February 7, 2014.

The Senate Agriculture Committee reported its version of the 2013 omnibus farm bill on May 14, 2013 (S. 954, the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2013), by a vote of 15-5. Floor action began during the week of May 20, 2013, and concluded on June 10, 2013, when the full Senate approved the measure by a vote of 66-27. While the bill was being debated in the Senate, approximately nine amendments were adopted and six were rejected. Attempts to modify the sugar program, further limit SNAP spending, eliminate crop insurance subsidies for tobacco, and require the labeling of genetically engineered foods were all defeated. More than 200 other amendments were offered to the Senate bill, but were not considered, when an agreement could not be reached on consolidating the amendments and limiting floor debate.

On May 15, 2013, the House Agriculture Committee completed markup of its version of the bill ( H.R. 1947 , the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013) and approved the revised measure by a 36-10 vote. The bill was subsequently referred to the House Judiciary Committee, which revised the bill to ensure that certain dairy programs were subject to standard rulemaking procedures. Floor action on the House bill was conducted during the week of June 17, 2013, when numerous amendments were adopted to the committee bill. However, the amended bill was defeated by a vote of 195-234 on June 20.

Three weeks later, the full House debated a variation of the defeated bill that dropped all of the nutrition title but included all of the earlier adopted floor amendments to the other titles. This revised bill ( H.R. 2642 ) was approved by the House by a 216-208 vote on July 11. In order to initiate conference committee negotiations with the House, the Senate on July 18 substituted the text of H.R. 2642 with the text of S. 954 . On September 19, the House passed a stand-alone nutrition bill ( H.R. 3102 ) by a vote of 217-210. The House adopted a resolution ( H.Res. 361 ) on September 28 that combined the texts of H.R. 2642 and H.R. 3102 into one bill ( H.R. 2642 ) for purposes of resolving differences with the Senate.

A conference agreement reconciling the differences between the two measures was reported as the Agricultural Act of 2014 ( H.Rept. 113-333 ) on January 27, 2014. Within eight days, both chambers approved the conference agreement, the House on January 29 by a vote of 251-166 and the Senate on February 4 by a vote of 68-32. The President signed it into law ( P.L. 113-79 ) on February 7, 2014.

This report begins with a brief overview of the estimated budgetary impact of the 2014 farm bill, followed by a summary comparison of the major provisions of each title. A side-by-side section comprehensively compares all of the provisions in P.L. 113-79 to Senate and House versions of the farm bill—including S. 954 as passed by the Senate (also referred to as the Senate amendment to H.R. 2642 ) and the House-passed version of H.R. 2642 (which includes the provisions of H.R. 3102 as a new Title IV to H.R. 2642 )—as well as to relevant provisions in then-current law.

The "Prior Law/Policy" column of the side-by-side tables reflects the provisions of the 2008 farm bill ( P.L. 110-246 ) as amended by the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 ( P.L. 112-240 ), which extended most of the 2008 farm bill provisions for an additional year, as well as other relevant statutes that are revised by the 2014 farm bill.

Budgetary Impact2

The budgetary impact of the 2014 farm bill is measured relative to what the prior farm bill would have spent had it been continued. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected that the mandatory programs of the 2008 farm bill would have cost $973 billion if continued for the next 10 years (FY2014-FY2023). This "baseline" already had been reduced by $6.4 billion to reflect the effects of sequestration over the 10-year baseline.

Compared to this post-sequestration baseline, the 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ) reduces projected spending and the deficit by $16.6 billion (-1.7%) over 10 years. (The five-year reduction through FY2018 is $5.4 billion from a five-year baseline of $494 billion.)

P.L. 113-79 saves less than either the House-passed or Senate-passed proposals. The House-passed combination of H.R. 2642 and H.R. 3102 together would have reduced spending by $51.9 billion (-5.3%) over 10 years. The Senate-passed farm bill proposal ( S. 954 ) would have reduced spending by $17.9 billion (-1.8%) over 10 years.

If the baseline had not already been reduced by sequestration, the enacted 2014 farm bill could have been credited for reducing spending by $23 billion over 10 years. Similarly, the savings from each of the House and Senate proposals could have been $6.4 billion greater. But sequestration had already been factored into the baseline, so the official score of P.L. 113-79 remains as savings of $16.6 billion over 10 years.

The net reduction is composed of some titles receiving more funding than in the past, while other titles provide offsets, some of which contributes to deficit reduction. The titles for farm commodity subsidies, nutrition, and conservation provide budgetary savings. The titles for crop insurance, research, bioenergy, horticulture, rural development, trade, forestry, and miscellaneous items receive additional funding.

The final 2014 farm bill is projected to spend $956 billion over the next 10 years, of which $756 billion is for nutrition assistance and $200 billion is for the agriculture portion. (The five-year total is $489 billion, with $391 billion for nutrition and $98 billion for the agriculture portion). Within the agriculture portion, crop insurance outlays are projected to be $90 billion over the next 10 years, $58 billion for conservation, and $44 billion for farm commodity programs (Title I). The trade title is projected to spend $3.6 billion over the next 10 years, horticulture $1.7 billion, research $1.3 billion, and bioenergy $1.1 billion. Figure 1 illustrates the budgetary impacts of changes to each title in each bill. The Table contains the data in tabular form and includes an estimate of the projected outlays. More details on the farm bill budget are available in CRS Report R42484, Budget Issues That Shaped the 2014 Farm Bill .

Title-by-Title Summaries of the Enacted 2014 Farm Bill (P.L. 113-79)

Farm Bill Title I, Commodities8

Under the enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ), farm support for traditional program crops is restructured by eliminating direct payments, the counter-cyclical price (CCP) program, and the Average Crop Revenue Election (ACRE) program. Since 1996, direct payments have been made to producers and landowners based on historical production of corn, wheat, soybeans, cotton, rice, peanuts, and other "covered" crops. Direct payments lost political support in recent years because recipients did not need to suffer a loss in order to receive a payment.

Approximately three-fourths of the 10-year, $47 billion in savings associated with the elimination of current farm programs was used to offset the costs of revising farm programs in Title I, adding permanent disaster assistance in Title I, and enhancing crop insurance in Title XI. P.L. 113-79 provides farm programs (described below) for covered crops, but not cotton, which has a new crop insurance policy (see " Farm Bill Title XI, Crop Insurance "). Under P.L. 113-79 , authority is continued for marketing assistance loans, which provide additional low-price protection at "loan rates" specified in previous law (with an adjustment made to the cotton loan rate). As in previous farm bills as well as in the 2013 Senate farm bill, the enacted 2014 farm bill suspends permanent price support authority under the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 and Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1949 until program authority expires in 2018. In contrast, the House bill would have repealed permanent law and made permanent the commodity support programs authorized in H.R. 2642 .

P.L. 113-79 borrows conceptually from 2008 farm bill programs while enhancing price or revenue protection for producers. Producers may choose between the following two programs linked to a decline in either price or revenue (price times yield).

It retain s a counter-cyclical price program , called Price Loss Coverage or PLC , which makes a farm payment when the farm price for a covered crop declines below its "reference price" set in statute (and the House bill) . To better protect producers in a market downturn, the reference prices are higher than the parameters in the expired 2008 farm bill (called "target prices"). The Senate farm bill would have provided slightly lower levels of fixed reference prices for rice and peanuts, and significantly lower levels for other crops by using a market-based reference price calculated as 55% of a rolling five-year average (excluding the high and low years). After significant congressional debate, P.L. 113-79 continues current policy by making payments on 85% of historical plantings (or "base acres"), a provision designed to minimize the program's effect on planting decisions. Base acres can be updated with plantings from 2009-2012. In contrast, the House bill would have made payments based on 85% of planted acreage to better align payments with producer risk, but critics contended that such a provision could lead to production distortions and trade disputes. It retains a revenue-based progra m, called Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC), which is designed to cover a portion of a farmer's out-of-pocket loss (referred to as "shallow loss") when crop revenues decline . Farmers may select ARC as an alternative to PLC. Like the PLC program, ARC payments are made on 85% of base acres. (This is in contrast to both the House and Senate bills, which would have made revenue program payments on planted acreage.) Payments are triggered when actual crop revenue drops below 86% of historical or "benchmark" revenue (compared with 88% in the Senate bill and 85% in the House bill). Farmers can select coverage at either the county or individual farm level. These farm programs are separate from a producer's decision to purchase crop insurance. However, farmers selecting the Price Loss Coverage (but not ARC) are also eligible to purchase an additional subsidized crop insurance policy to protect against "shallow losses" called the Supplemental Coverage Option (see Title XI, Crop Insurance below).

Five disaster programs were established in the 2008 farm bill for weather-induced losses in FY2008-FY2011. P.L. 113-79 retroactively reauthorizes and funds four programs covering livestock and tree assistance, beginning FY2012 and continuing without an expiration date, as provided in the House bill (the Senate bill had authorized the programs for only FY2012-FY2018). The crop disaster program from the 2008 farm bill (i.e., Supplemental Revenue Assistance, or SURE) was not reauthorized, but elements of it are folded into the new ARC by allowing producers to protect against farm-level revenue losses. In the Miscellaneous Title (XII), P.L. 113-79 adopted the Senate bill provision to provide disaster benefits to tree fruit producers who suffered crop losses in 2012, and additional coverage levels are authorized under the Noninsured Crop Assistance Program (NAP).

Farm commodity programs have certain limits that cap payments (in the 2008 farm bill, $40,000 per person for direct payments, plus $65,000 for counter-cyclical and ACRE payments; limits may be doubled with a spouse). There is also an eligibility requirement based on adjusted gross income (AGI, in the 2008 farm bill a maximum of $500,000 per person for nonfarm income and $750,000 for farm income). The enacted 2014 farm bill sets a $125,000 per person cap on the total of PLC, ARC, marketing loan gains and loan deficiency payments. This approach differs from the House and Senate bills, which had separate $50,000 and $75,000 limits for the new counter-cyclical and marketing loan programs, respectively. Although the total limit in P.L. 113-79 is the same as in the two bills, some argue that this may allow larger payments from an individual program when payments from another program are small. P.L. 113-79 applies the $125,000 limit to the total from all covered commodities except peanuts, with a separate $125,000 limit for peanuts—similar to 2008 farm bill law and the Senate proposal. Also regarding eligibility, P.L. 113-79 instructs USDA to write regulations that define "significant contribution of active personal management" to more clearly and objectively implement existing law. This differs from both the Senate and House bills, which would have deleted "actively personal management" and effectively required personal labor in the farming operation. For AGI limits, the enacted 2014 farm bill changes the AGI limit to a single, total AGI limit of $900,000. The AGI limit was $750,000 in the Senate bill and $950,000 in the House bill. P.L. 113-79 does not cap total farm program spending, unlike the House bill's cap of $16.96 billion for FY2014-FY2020 for combined payments under Price Loss Coverage and Revenue Loss Coverage.

For dairy policy, P.L. 113-79 makes significant changes, including as in both bills the elimination of the dairy product price support program, the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) program, and export subsidies. These are replaced by a new program, which makes payments to participating dairy producers when the national margin (average farm price of milk minus an average feed cost ration) falls below a producer-selected margin ranging from $4.00 per hundredweight (cwt.) to $8.00/cwt. No premium is charged for the minimum $4.00/cwt. margin protection; however, premiums are charged for coverage at higher margins—the premium schedule differentiates for annual milk production of 4 million or fewer pounds and for production greater than 4 million pounds. The final law removes a provision in S. 954 that would have subjected participating producers to a separate program to reduce incentives to produce milk when margins are low—the House bill had specifically excluded this provision. In addition, the final bill adopts a provision from the House bill that requires USDA to adhere to standard rulemaking procedures and to determine the market impacts of the new program during the rulemaking process. Separately, federal milk marketing orders have permanent statutory authority and continue intact. However, the Senate bill only included two additional provisions: one that would have required USDA to use a specified pre-hearing procedure to consider alternative formulas for Class III milk product pricing, and a second that would have required USDA to analyze and report on the potential effects of replacing end-product pricing with alternative pricing procedures. P.L. 113-79 is silent on this matter.

The objective and structure of the sugar program are left unchanged from prior law in P.L. 113-79 .

Farm Bill Title II, Conservation12

Prior to enactment of the 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ), the agricultural conservation portfolio included over 20 conservation programs. The Conservation title of P.L. 113-79 reduces and consolidates the number of conservation programs, while also reducing mandatory funding over the 10-year baseline by close to $4 billion.

Many of the larger existing conservation programs, such as the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), and the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), are reauthorized, while smaller and similar conservation programs are "rolled" into them. In response to reduced demand and as a budget saving measure, the largest conservation program, CRP, is reauthorized with a reduced acreage enrollment cap using a step-down approach from the current 32 million acres to 24 million by FY2018. CRP also is amended to include the enrollment of grassland acres similar to the Grasslands Reserve Program (GRP), which is repealed. EQIP, a program that assists producers applying conservation measures on land in production, is reauthorized in the 2014 farm bill with a 5% funding carve-out for wildlife habitat practices (similar to the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program, WHIP, which is repealed). Funding for EQIP is reduced by a total of almost $500 million over 10 years, halfway between the Senate's proposed reduction of $1 billion and the House bill's proposal of none. CSP, another working lands program, is reauthorized at a reduced enrollment level of 10 million acres annually, down from 12.769 million acres annually under current law.

As in the House- and Senate-passed bills, P.L. 113-79 creates two new conservation programs—the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) and the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP)—out of several of the existing programs. Conservation easement programs, including the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP), Farmland Protection Program (FPP), and GRP, are repealed and consolidated to create ACEP. ACEP retains most of the program provisions in the current easement programs by establishing two types of easements: wetland reserve easements (similar to WRP) that protect and restore wetlands, and agricultural land easements (similar to FPP and GRP) that prevent non-agricultural uses on productive farm or grasslands. The Agricultural Water Enhancement Program (AWEP), Chesapeake Bay Watershed program, Cooperative Conservation Partnership Initiative (CCPI), and Great Lakes Basin program are repealed (as in both the House and Senate bills) and consolidated into the new RCPP. RCPP will use partnership agreements with state and local governments, Indian tribes, farmer cooperatives, and other conservation organizations to leverage federal funding and further conservation on a regional or watershed scale.

The most contentious provision in Title II was the Senate-passed bill's inclusion of the federally funded portion of crop insurance premiums to the list of program benefits that could be lost if a producer is found to produce an agricultural commodity on highly erodible land without implementing an approved conservation plan or qualifying exemption, or converts a wetland to crop production. This prerequisite, referred to as conservation compliance, has existed since the 1985 farm bill and previously affected most USDA farm program benefits, but has excluded crop insurance since 1996. The House-passed bill offered no comparable provision; however, P.L. 113-79 includes the majority of the Senate-passed provision, with some changes.

Farm Bill Title III, Trade13

Title III of the enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ) deals with statutes concerning U.S. international food aid and agricultural export programs. P.L. 113-79 reauthorizes all of the international food aid programs, including the largest, Food for Peace Title II (emergency and nonemergency food aid). In addition, P.L. 113-79 amends current food aid law both to increase the portion of Title II funds allocated to eligible organizations under Section 202(e)—up from a range of "not less than 7.5% nor more than 13%" to "not less than 7.5% nor more than 20%"—and to allow for greater flexibility in the use of Section 202(e) funds, including for cash-based assistance (i.e., cash transfers, food vouchers, and local and regional commodity purchases). In addition, it places greater emphasis on improving the quality of food aid products (i.e., enhancing their nutritional quality) and ensuring that sales of agricultural commodity donations do not disrupt local markets. In this regard, an annual report to Congress is required to address how funds are allocated to and used by eligible organizations as well as the rate of return on aid funds—defined as the sum of the proceeds from monetization of food aid commodities relative to the total cost of procuring and shipping the commodities to the recipient country's local market. Special attention is to be given when the rate of return is below 70%.

The enacted 2014 farm bill repeals the specified, annual dollar amounts for nonemergency food aid (i.e., the "safe box") required in current law. Instead, it provides that not less than 20%, nor more than 30% of funds be made available to carry out nonemergency food aid programs, subject to the requirement that a minimum of $350 million be provided for nonemergency food aid each fiscal year. P.L. 113-79 creates a new local and regional purchase program in place of the expired local and regional procurement (LRP) pilot program of the 2008 farm bill and raises the authorized appropriations for LRP to $80 million annually for FY2014 through FY2018.

P.L. 113-79 reauthorizes funding for the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Export Credit Guarantee program. The value of U.S. agricultural exports that can benefit from export credit guarantees remains at $5.5 billion annually. To address differences that have arisen over how the United States might comply with the WTO cotton case won by Brazil, the final law grants flexibility to the Secretary of Agriculture to make changes to the credit guarantee program to meet the terms agreed upon by both countries. This program is also amended in three ways to address in part Brazil's criticism of how it is administered. P.L. 113-79 also reauthorizes through FY2018 CCC funding of $200 million annually for the Market Access Program (MAP), which finances promotional activities for both generic and branded U.S. agricultural products. It also provides CCC funding of $34.5 million annually through FY2018 for the Foreign Market Development Program (FMDP), a generic commodity promotion program, and CCC funding of up to $10 million a year through FY2018 for the Emerging Markets Program (EMP), to carry out technical assistance activities that facilitate U.S. farm exports and to address technical barriers to trade in emerging markets.

The enacted 2014 farm bill also requires the Secretary, in consultation with the House and Senate Agriculture Committees and House and Senate Appropriations Committees, to propose a plan to reorganize the international trade functions of USDA, to report to the congressional committees on the plan 180 days after the farm bill's enactment, and to implement the reorganization plan not later than one year after the report is submitted. It directs the Secretary to include in the plan the establishment of the position of an Under Secretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs within USDA, who will be responsible for serving as a multi-agency coordinator of sanitary and phytosanitary matters and addressing agricultural non-tariff trade barriers.

Farm Bill Title IV, Nutrition14

The Nutrition title in the enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ) reconciles the House-passed bill ( H.R. 2642 , as combined with H.R. 3102 , Nutrition Reform and Work Opportunity Act) and the Senate-passed bill ( S. 954 ). The final law reauthorizes SNAP and related programs for five years; CBO estimates that the Nutrition title in P.L. 113-79 will reduce spending by $8.0 billion over 10 years (FY2014-FY2023). The SNAP provisions alone are estimated to reduce spending by slightly more than $8.6 billion over 10 years. Certain other Nutrition provisions are estimated to increase spending, which together result in the total estimated reduction of $8.0 billion.

Farm bill conferees were faced with significant differences in the SNAP provisions in the Senate- and House-passed bills. Over the 10-year budget window (FY2014-FY2023), CBO estimated that the Senate's Nutrition title would have reduced spending by approximately $4 billion and the House's Nutrition title would have reduced spending by approximately $39 billion. The House bill would have reauthorized SNAP and related programs for three years, while the Senate would have reauthorized the programs for five years.

Although the Nutrition title of the enacted 2014 farm bill contains a number of provisions that change aspects of SNAP and related nutrition programs, it largely retains the provisions in the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 and other nutrition program authorizing statutes. For example, most eligibility and benefit calculation rules in SNAP do not change under P.L. 113-79 . While various changes in the Nutrition title are estimated to reduce or increase spending on the nutrition programs, most provisions are estimated to have little or no budgetary impact.

The budgetary impact of the Nutrition title in P.L. 113-79 (as compared to the Senate and House bills) is largely the result of changes to SNAP eligibility and benefit calculation rules. In particular, it is the result of the final law excluding two House SNAP provisions that were estimated to make the bill's greatest reductions in SNAP spending (ending broad-based categorical eligibility and ending the availability of labor-market based waivers from the time limit for certain able-bodied adults). Major issues that have potential to impact households' eligibility and benefit amounts include the following.

P.L. 113-79 amends how Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) payments are treated in the calculation of SNAP benefits. Both the Senate and House had included such changes, with the House version of this change estimated to affect a greater share of participants. The final agreement, for the most part, includes the House version. According to information from June 2012, this change to benefit calculation is expected to reduce household benefit amounts in approximately 17 states. The House and Senate had both proposed to disqualify certain ex-offenders from receiving SNAP benefits. P.L. 113-79 modifies that policy by requiring the disqualification of only such offenders who are not complying with the terms of their sentence. P.L. 113-79 includes policies related to the SNAP Employment and Training (E&T) program, including a pilot project authority and related funding ($200 million over FY2014 and FY2015) for states to implement and USDA to evaluate a variety of work programs for SNAP participants. The agreement includes the House bill's provisions that would expand reporting measures for all E&T programs. P.L. 113-79 does not include the House's expansion of the time limit for able-bodied adults without dependents or the House's work-related policies that may incentivize states to reduce their caseloads. P.L. 113-79 does not include any changes to broad-based categorical eligibility. The House bill would have eliminated broad-based categorical eligibility, which would have impacted the eligibility of SNAP participants in 43 states. P.L. 113-79 does not include the House provision to give states the option to administer drug testing as part of their eligibility determination processes.

Since SNAP provides benefits redeemable for SNAP-eligible foods at SNAP-eligible retailers, much of SNAP law pertains to retailer authorization and benefit issuance and redemption. P.L. 113-79 includes the retailer and redemption provisions that had been included in both the House and Senate bills. This includes requiring stores to stock more fresh foods, requiring retailers to pay for their electronic benefit transfer (EBT) machines, and providing additional funding for combatting trafficking (the sale of SNAP benefits). P.L. 113-79 also includes $100 million in mandatory funding (over 10 years) for Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive grants, a program similar to that in the Senate bill, which will support organizations that offer bonus incentives for SNAP purchases of fruits and vegetables.

The enacted 2014 farm bill increases funding for the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), the program that provides USDA foods and federal support to emergency feeding organizations (e.g., food banks and food pantries). Taking into account CBO's estimates of inflation, it is estimated to provide an additional $205 million over 10 years, $125 million of which is provided in the first 5 years. (The Senate bill would have increased funding by $54 million over 10 years, and the House would have increased funding by $333 million over 10 years.)

P.L. 113-79 includes many other changes to SNAP and related program policy. These changes include amendments to the nutrition programs operated by tribes and territories, the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), and the distribution of USDA foods to schools. The 2010 child nutrition reauthorization (Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, P.L. 111-296 ) has already reauthorized WIC and the child nutrition programs through FY2015, but P.L. 113-79 includes related policies, such as farm-to-school efforts.

Farm Bill Title V, Credit17

The Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (also known as the ConAct) is the permanent statute that authorizes USDA agricultural credit and rural development programs. USDA serves as a lender of last resort by providing direct and guaranteed loans to farmers and ranchers who are denied direct credit by commercial lenders but have the wherewithal to repay the loan.

The enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ) makes relatively small policy changes to USDA's credit programs. It gives USDA discretion to recognize alternative legal entities to qualify for farm loans and allow alternatives to meet a three-year farming experience requirement. It increases the maximum size of down-payment loans, and eliminates term limits on guaranteed operating loans (by removing a maximum number of years that an individual can remain eligible). It increases the percentage of a conservation loan that can be guaranteed, adds another lending priority for beginning farmers, and facilitates loans for the purchase of highly fractionated land in Indian reservations, among other changes.

The Senate bill would have updated and modernized the ConAct's statutory language and reorganized the various programs into separate subtitles (Subtitle A for farm loans; Subtitle B for rural development; Subtitle C for general provisions). The House bill, like the final law, did not reorganize the ConAct.

For the Farm Credit Act, which governs the Farm Credit System, P.L. 113-79 adopts a Senate provision that instructs the system's regulator (the Farm Credit Administration) to improve the disclosure of compensation packages for senior officers in the Farm Credit System.

Farm Bill Title VI, Rural Development18

Like the Credit title discussed above, the Rural Development title in the Senate-passed 2013 farm bill ( S. 954 ) proposed a restructuring of the ConAct, which provides permanent authority for USDA to carry out many of the rural loan and grant programs in its portfolio. The Senate provision would have consolidated various programs, established criteria for which rural communities receive priority in making loan and grant awards, and modified the definitions of "rural" and "rural area." This proposed reorganization of the ConAct is not included in the enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ), although one aspect of the proposed restructuring is retained: the consolidation of two rural business programs into a single business development platform, which is authorized with annual appropriations of $65 million through FY2018. P.L. 113-79 increases the mandatory spending authorization of the Value-Added Agricultural Product Grants to $63 million and retains the program's $40 million in annual discretionary appropriations. P.L. 113-79 also adopts the Senate provision providing $150 million in mandatory spending for pending rural development loans and grants and the Senate provision to fund the Microentrepreneur Assistance Program at $3 million annually in mandatory spending and $40 million subject to appropriations.

P.L. 113-79 adopts the House provision to amend the water and waste water direct and guaranteed loan program to encourage financing by private or cooperative lenders to the maximum extent possible. The final law also adopts the House provision that provides up to 5% of the Community Facilities appropriation for technical assistance to help smaller communities develop their applications to the program, and to use loan guarantees to the maximum extent possible. P.L. 113-79 also adopts the House provisions directing the Secretary of Agriculture to begin collecting data on the economic effects of the projects that USDA Rural Development funds, and directs the Secretary to develop simplified applications for funding.

The enacted 2014 farm bill also retains the definition of "rural" and "rural area" under current law for purposes of program eligibility. The Senate bill had proposed modifications to the 2008 farm bill permitting communities that might otherwise be ineligible for USDA Rural Development funding to petition USDA to designate their communities as "rural in character," thereby making them eligible for program support. While the provision under current law is retained, the modifications to the provision were not adopted by the conferees. P.L. 113-79 does amend the definition of rural area in the 1949 Housing Act so that areas deemed rural between 2000 and 2010 will retain that designation until USDA receives data from the 2020 decennial census. That provision also raises the population threshold for eligibility from 25,000 to 35,000.

P.L. 113-79 adopts the Senate provision authorizing USDA to prioritize otherwise eligible applications that support multijurisdictional strategic economic and community development. The provision reserves 20% of a fiscal year's appropriation for community facilities, water and waste water projects, and rural business development for such strategic development projects. Also adopted is the Senate provision authorizing a new Rural Energy Savings Program, which provides 0% interest rate loans to eligible borrowers to implement energy efficiency measures.

Included in P.L. 113-79 (as in both bills) is reauthorization of funding for programs under the Rural Electrification Act of 1936, including the Access to Broadband Telecommunications Services in Rural Areas Program and the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program. It largely adopts the Senate provisions authorizing access to broadband telecommunications service to rural areas, including authorized appropriations of $10 million annually (FY2014-FY2018) for a new Rural Gigabit Network Pilot program for "ultra-high speed" broadband connectivity. Conferees did not adopt the Senate provision that would have authorized a new grant program for rural broadband in addition to the existing loan program.

P.L. 113-79 adopts the Senate provision reauthorizing the Northern Great Plains Regional Authority at its current authorized appropriation of $30 million annually, rather than the House measure that would have authorized $2 million in appropriations. As in both bills, P.L. 113-79 also reauthorizes the three regional authorities established in the 2008 farm bill.

Farm Bill Title VII, Research19

USDA is authorized under various laws to conduct agricultural research at the federal level, and to provide support for cooperative research, extension, and post-secondary agricultural education programs in the states. The enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ) reauthorizes funding for these activities through FY2018, subject to annual appropriations, and amends authority so that only competitive grants can be awarded under certain programs.

Mandatory spending for the research title is increased by $1.145 billion over 10 years compared with projected baseline spending. Funding is increased for the Specialty Crop Research Initiative ($745 million over 10 years) and the Organic Agricultural Research and Extension Initiative ($100 million). Also, mandatory funding is continued for the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program ($100 million).

As in the Senate-passed version of the bill, P.L. 113-79 provides mandatory funding of $200 million to establish the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research, a nonprofit corporation designed to supplement USDA's basic and applied research activities. It will solicit and accept private donations to award grants for collaborative public/private partnerships with scientists at USDA and in academia, nonprofits, and the private sector.

Farm Bill Title VIII, Forestry20

General forestry legislation is within the jurisdiction of the Agriculture Committees, and past farm bills have included provisions addressing forestry assistance, especially on private lands. The enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ) generally repeals, reauthorizes, and modifies existing programs and provisions under two main authorities: the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act (CFAA), as amended, and the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (HFRA), as amended.

Many federal forestry assistance programs are permanently authorized, and thus do not require reauthorization in the farm bill. However, P.L. 113-79 does reauthorize several other forestry assistance programs through FY2018. It also repeals programs that have expired or have never received appropriations. Both the House- and Senate-passed bills included similar reauthorizations and repeals.

P.L. 113-79 also includes provisions that address the management of the National Forest System. For example, it permanently reauthorizes stewardship contracting and extends the good neighbor authority nationwide. Both the House and the Senate bills included similar provisions, although the House bill would have reauthorized stewardship contracting only through FY2018. P.L. 113-79 also adopts a Senate provision authorizing the designation of treatment areas within the National Forest System that are of deteriorating forest health due to insect or disease infestation, and allowing for expedited project planning within those designated areas. However, it does not include House provisions requiring the designation of critical areas within the National Forest System and authorizing expedited project planning for projects up to 10,000 acres. P.L. 113-79 does include provisions from the House bill to modify the existing public notice, comment, and appeals process for land and resource management plans.

Farm Bill Title IX, Energy21

USDA renewable energy programs have been used to incentivize research, development, and adoption of renewable energy projects, including solar, wind, and anaerobic digesters. However, the primary focus of USDA renewable energy programs has been to promote U.S. biofuels production and use. Cornstarch-based ethanol dominates the U.S. biofuels industry. The 2008 farm bill attempted to refocus U.S. biofuels policy initiatives in favor of non-corn feedstocks, especially the development of the cellulosic biofuels industry. The most critical programs to this end are the Bioenergy Program for Advanced Biofuels, which pays producers for production of eligible advanced biofuels; the Biorefinery Assistance Program, which assists in the development of new and emerging technologies for advanced biofuels; the Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP), which assists farmers in developing nontraditional crops for use as feedstocks for the eventual production of cellulosic biofuels; and the Renewable Energy for America Program (REAP), which has funded a variety of biofuels-related projects, including the installation of blender pumps to help circumvent the emerging "blend wall" that could potentially circumscribe domestic ethanol consumption near current levels of about 13 billion gallons.

All of the major farm bill energy programs expired at the end of FY2013 and lacked baseline funding going forward. The enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ) extends most of the renewable energy provisions of the 2008 farm bill, with the exception of the Rural Energy Self-Sufficiency Initiative, the Forest Biomass for Energy Program, the Biofuels Infrastructure Study, and the Renewable Fertilizer Study, which are either omitted or explicitly repealed. In addition, P.L. 113-79 adds a new reporting requirement on energy use and efficiency at USDA facilities.

Over the five-year reauthorization period (FY2014-FY2018), P.L. 113-79 contains a total of $694 million in new mandatory funding and authorizes $765 million to be appropriated for the various farm bill renewable energy programs. This contrasts with the House- and Senate-passed farm bills. The Senate bill ( S. 954 ) contained a total of $880 million in new mandatory funding and authorized $1.140 billion to be appropriated for the various farm bill renewable energy programs. The House bill ( H.R. 2642 ) contained no mandatory funding for these programs and authorized $1.405 billion over the five years, subject to annual appropriations. In addition, the House bill would have eliminated all support for the collection, harvest, storage, and transportation (CHST) component of BCAP, which would have severely limitied its potential effectiveness as an incentive to produce cellulosic feedstocks. BCAP funding for CHST is retained in P.L. 113-79 .

Farm Bill Title X, Horticulture22

The enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ) adopts many of the horticulture provisions in the Senate- ( S. 954 ) and House-passed ( H.R. 2642 ) farm bills. The final bill reauthorizes many of the existing farm bill provisions supporting farming operations in the specialty crop and certified organic sectors. Many Title X provisions fall into the categories of marketing and promotion; organic certification; data and information collection; pest and disease control; food safety and quality standards; and local foods. CBO estimates a total increase in mandatory spending of $338 million (FY2014-FY2018) for Title X in P.L. 113-79 . However, provisions affecting the specialty crop and certified organic sectors are not limited to the Horticulture title, but are contained within several other titles of the new law. These include programs in the research, nutrition, and trade titles, among others. CBO's cost estimate for specialty crop provisions in Title X does not include cost estimates for provisions in other titles. CBO estimates research programs benefitting specialty crop and organic producers, for example, will require a $418 million increase in mandatory spending (FY2014-FY2018).

P.L. 113-79 adopts nearly all the programs reauthorized in both the House and Senate bills, and in some cases provides for increased funding for several key programs benefitting specialty crop producers. These include the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program, plant pest and disease programs, USDA's Market News for specialty crops, the Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI), and the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (Snack Program) and Section 32 purchases for fruits and vegetables under the Nutrition title. The final law also reauthorized most programs benefitting certified organic agriculture producers, including continued support for USDA's National Organic Program (NOP) and development of crop insurance mechanisms for organic producers, Organic Production and Market Data Initiatives (ODI), and research programs such as the Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (OREI) and the Organic Transitions Program (ORG) under the Integrated Research, Education, and Extension Competitive Grants Program. Both bills would give USDA authority to consider an application for a research and promotion order (or "checkoff" program) for the organic sector. Reauthorization of each of these provisions was in both the House and Senate bills. One exception is that the House bill would have repealed the National Organic Certification Cost Share Program (NOCCSP), which was not part of the Senate bill, but was included in the final law.

Programs in other farm bill titles benefitting specialty crop and certified organic producers include the Value-Added Producer Grant Program, Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops (TASC), the Market Access Program (MAP), and most conservation programs (including assistance specifically for organic producers), among other programs, within the crop insurance, credit, and miscellaneous titles. Horticulture and other titles in P.L. 113-79 , which were for the most part included in both the House-and Senate-passed bills, also include provisions that expand opportunities for local food systems and also beginning farmers and ranchers. Other provisions supporting local food producers are within the research, nutrition, and rural development titles, among others.

The House-passed bill included other provisions that were not in the Senate bill. These provisions would have provided exemptions from certain regulatory requirements under some laws, such as the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Endangered Species Act. P.L. 113-79 included aspects of some of these provisions, albeit in modified form, but did not adopt the provisions as proposed by the House bill.

Farm Bill Title XI, Crop Insurance23

The crop insurance title enhances the existing federal crop insurance program, which is permanently authorized by the Federal Crop Insurance Act. Crop insurance is designed generally to cover losses from natural disasters, while Title I programs ("farm programs") make payments to farmers of program crops when prices fall below statutory minimums or when crop revenue is low relative to recent levels.

The federal crop insurance program makes available subsidized crop insurance to producers who purchase a policy to protect against losses in yield, crop revenue, or whole farm revenue. More than 100 crops are insurable. The enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ) increases funding for crop insurance relative to baseline levels by an additional $5.7 billion over 10 years.

Most of the funding increase stems from two new insurance products, one for cotton and one for other crops. With cotton not covered by the counter-cyclical price or revenue programs established in Title I, a new crop insurance policy called Stacked Income Protection Plan (STAX) is made available for cotton producers. The STAX policy indemnifies losses in county revenue of greater than 10% of expected revenue but not more than the deductible level (e.g., 25%) selected by the producer for the underlying individual policy (or not more than 30% if used as stand-alone policy). Similarly, for other crops, P.L. 113-79 (as in both the House- and Senate-passed bills) makes available an additional policy (i.e., not stand-alone) called Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO), based on expected county yields or revenue, to cover part of the deductible under the producer's underlying policy (referred to as a farmer's out-of-pocket loss or "shallow loss"). The farmer subsidy as a share of the policy premium is set at 80% for STAX and 65% for SCO.

Additional crop insurance changes in both bills, and adopted by the conferees, are designed to expand or improve crop insurance for other commodities, including specialty crops. Provisions revise the value of crop insurance for organic crops to reflect prices of organic (not conventional) crops. USDA is required to conduct more research on whole farm revenue insurance with higher coverage levels than currently available. Studies or policies are also required on insuring (1) specialty crop producers for food safety and contamination-related losses, (2) swine producers for a catastrophic disease event, (3) producers of catfish against reduction in the margin between the market prices and production costs, (4) commercial poultry production against business disruptions caused by integrator bankruptcy, (5) poultry producers for a catastrophic event, (6) producers of biomass sorghum or sweet sorghum grown as feedstock for renewable energy, and (7) alfalfa producers. A peanut revenue insurance product and rice margin insurance also are mandated. Another provision provides funding for private-sector index weather insurance, which insures against specific weather events and not actual loss.

For conservation purposes, a provision in Title XI reduces crop insurance subsidies and noninsured crop disaster assistance for the first four years of planting on native sod acreage in Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. In Title II, crop insurance premium subsidies are available only if producers are in compliance with wetland conservation requirements and conservation requirements for highly erodible land, as originally adopted by the Senate.

A controversial item not included in P.L. 113-79 was the reduction of premium subsidies for high income farmers, a provision that was included in the Senate bill but not the House bill. In the 2012 farm bill passed by the Senate in the 112th Congress, an amendment was adopted during floor debate to reduce crop insurance premium subsidies by 15 percentage points for producers with average adjusted gross income greater than $750,000. In 2013, the Senate Agriculture Committee-reported version of S. 954 did not include the provision, but an amendment to S. 954 requiring the subsidy reduction was adopted on the Senate floor in June 2013 by a vote of 59-33.

Farm Bill Title XII, Miscellaneous24

The Miscellaneous title of the enacted 2014 farm bill ( P.L. 113-79 ) contains four sections: livestock; socially disadvantaged and limited-resource producers; other miscellaneous, and a fourth section added by the conferees on oilheat efficiency, research, and jobs training.

Animal health-related provisions in the livestock section of P.L. 113-79 include provisions that renew the trichinae certification and aquatic animal health programs that were established in the 2008 farm bill; establish an animal health laboratory network; and require USDA to continue to administer the avian influenza surveillance program through the National Poultry Improvement Plan. The section also includes a Sense of Congress statement on the priority of feral swine eradication.

P.L. 113-79 establishes a competitive production and marketing grant program for the sheep industry through the National Sheep Industry Improvement Center. Another provision confirms the transfer of catfish inspection authority to USDA from FDA (originally in the 2008 farm bill) and directs USDA to finalize the rules on catfish inspection, and for USDA and FDA to execute a memorandum of understanding to improve interagency cooperation on inspection. Lastly, USDA is to conduct an economic analysis of its country-of-origin labeling (COOL) rule (78 Federal Register 31367, May 24, 2013) within 6 months of the enactment of the farm bill. Some livestock industry groups pushed for a provision to repeal or modify the COOL law, but such a provision was not included in the final law.

P.L. 113-79 extends authority for outreach and technical assistance programs for socially disadvantaged farmer and ranchers, and adds military veteran farmers and ranchers as a qualifying group. The final law creates a research center to develop policy recommendations for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, reauthorizes funding for the USDA Office of Advocacy and Outreach for socially disadvantaged and veteran farmers and ranchers, and includes a provision to increase transparency by automatically providing receipts for service or denial of service.

Provisions in the other miscellaneous section of Title XII preserve farm bill benefits for participants in the High Plains Water Study, make available higher coverage levels under the Noninsured Crop Assistance Programs, prohibit attendance at animal-fighting events and exempt small dealers and exhibiters from license requirements under the Animal Welfare act. P.L. 113-79 also includes grants to promote the U.S. maple syrup industry, and grants for technological training for farm workers. It also creates a military veterans agricultural liaison within USDA to advocate for and to provide information to veterans, and establishes an Office of Tribal Relations to coordinate USDA activities with Native American tribes.

The final Miscellaneous title contains two provisions related to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The first establishes a standing agriculture-related subcommittee under the EPA's Science Advisory Board to provide advice on matters of significant impact on agricultural entities. The second provides National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit exemptions for certain silviculture activities. A provision amending the EPA's spill prevention, control, and countermeasure rule was excluded; as well as a provision prohibiting EPA from disclosing producer information

The section also includes provisions to establish a Pima Cotton Trust Fund and an Agriculture Wool Apparel Manufacturers Trust Fund for users of pima cotton and wool, and funding for wool research and promotion. The Citrus Disease Research and Development Trust Fund provision from the Senate bill was moved to the research title.

P.L. 113-79 adds a provision not found in either the House or Senate bills to provide mandatory funding in 2014 for Payments in Lieu of Taxes, which provides payments to local governments based on the presence of non-taxable federal lands. Also, the fourth section of the miscellaneous title includes new provisions on oilheat efficiency, renewable fuels research, and jobs training.

Sixteen provisions that were in either the House or Senate bill are not included in P.L. 113-79 . One particularly controversial issue that was deleted in conference was the interstate commerce provision originally in the House bill that would have prohibited states from imposing production or manufacturing standards on agricultural products from other states. Of interest to the livestock and poultry industry, provisions repealing marketing and competition rules proposed by USDA (the GIPSA rule) were excluded. Some of the other provisions not included were flood protection for the Missouri River basin and the Wallkill River and Black Dirt region; prohibitions on closing Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices with high workloads; a prohibition on FSA employees keeping GSA-leased cars overnight; and provisions on the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay also were excluded from the final law.

A Side-by Side Comparison of the Enacted 2014 Farm Bill (P.L. 113-79) with the Senate-Passed (S. 954) and House-Passed (H.R. 2642) Bills and Prior Law