House-Senate Farm Bill Pre-Conferencing Likely Underway

House and Senate Ag staff are likely trying to iron out farm bill differences ahead of the Senate’s return this week to save time, according to a key senator. The way Senator Chuck Grassley sees it,

Pre-conferencing could speed the farm bill process, but the House version is even less to Democrats’ liking, lacking any delay in SNAP funding penalties for states with high error rates. And McConnell hasn’t formally announced his return date which will determine when Ag Republicans can try again to advance their bill. Grassley says farmers have waited long enough.

Republicans fear Democrats are dug in on SNAP and may be betting they can write their own farm bill if they retake the House and/or Senate in the midterm elections. The third extension of the 2018 Farm Bill expires at the end of this month, when a fourth would be needed or key farm and nutrition programs will lapse.