America needs a Farm Bill

It’s time for the U.S. Senate to pass America’s Farm Bill — and have it signed into law this year.

Our country depends on the Farm Bill. Crucial progress was made when the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026, and we now urge the Senate Agriculture Committee to build on this momentum, markup their own draft of the Farm Bill, and send to the Senate floor for full passage.

In April, Farm Credit organized a letter to House leadership underscoring the vital need for this legislation. Along with more than 330 agricultural organizations, including all Farm Credit banks and associations representing the 50 states and Puerto Rico, I was proud to sign this letter, representing Capital Farm Credit. My signature expressed my appreciation to lawmakers for supporting key provisions in the current Farm Bill proposal, and the importance of passing it.

Since 2023, America’s farmers and rural communities have been left in limbo without a full, five-year Farm Bill. Temporary extensions and aid have filled the gaps of an evolving — and increasingly strained — agricultural economy. Today’s producers must navigate rising input costs, labor shortages, and low commodity prices, plus global conflict and trade volatility.

A Farm Bill fortifies current producers and helps enable their future by increasing and improving the tools available to them. The financial resources offered by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) must be modernized to reflect today’s farm structures and the costs of growing the food that fuels our nation. Important Farm Bill provisions would provide critical updates to increase USDA’s Farm Service Agency direct and guaranteed loan limits, plus make these programs easier and faster for farmers to access. These changes will allow lenders to use every tool in their toolbox to respond quickly to producers’ needs and will create a more sustainable future for agriculture.

Supporting our producers also means supporting the rural communities where they live and work. Rural Americans deserve access to high-quality local facilities, such as hospitals and childcare centers, just like their peers in urban and suburban neighborhoods. Key Farm Bill provisions would boost investment in these essential facilities by allowing Farm Credit to finance rural community facilities and encouraging partnerships on these projects with community banks.

For more than 100 years, Capital Farm Credit has supported rural communities and agriculture with reliable, consistent credit and financial services that include home, land and agribusiness lending; equipment and facilities leasing, and insurance for crops and livestock. As the state’s largest agricultural lender and a proud member of the Farm Credit System with more than 600 employees, we serve over 24,500 members and more than $13 billion in loan volume.

As a customer‑owned cooperative, we are rooted in our rural community and reinvest our earnings directly into the farmers, ranchers and rural communities we serve. Since 2006, we have distributed more than $3.1 billion in combined cash and allocated equities to members.

In this critical moment, serving rural America also includes doing our part to advocate for the passage of Farm Bill 2.0.

The stakes could not be higher. I urge our U.S. senators – along with their colleagues in Congress – to act now, because no one can afford to wait longer for a Farm Bill.