Farm Policy is Stuck
Tim Hammerich
News Reporter
Farmers rely on farm policy to provide stability and support in such a volatile industry. But right now many are feeling that the system isn’t working the way it should. Johnathan Coppess with the University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign says years of stagnant agricultural policy has farmers stuck.
Coppess… “ Policy is almost fighting itself at the farm level. I think the honest, the only honest thing is we are really stuck on where we're at in the policy space and it's hurting farmers. And I think that is, again, if you step back from a lot of the self-interest—‘I'm this kind of farmer and I like this kind of payment.’ And say, now wait a minute, the whole reason ag is exceptional to begin with is the fundamental importance of producing food. And that's what we should be focused on.”
Coppess says part of the problem is how the legislative systems currently operate.
Coppess… “ So you can't pass a farm bill without abiding by all these obscure budget rules that really lock you in, right? Because we're gonna project scores over 10 years, and we're going to say if you do something new and it costs money, you’ve got to cut something else. And so now you're fighting over that. This budget has really impacted passing legislation in Congress. And the Farm Bill is an example. So we've actually not solved, the very reason for the policy we've not solved, but instead we've allowed it to alter how we make policy changes outside the budget and then we're stuck.”
Coppess works as an Associate Professor and the Director of the Gardner Agriculture Policy Program.
