Georgia farmers will have to wait at least until the end of April
to get the federal programs they need to make this year’s final
planting decisions, say University of Georgia economists.

The U.S. House and Senate have both passed versions of a new farm
bill. A house-senate conference committee is trying to hammer out
the differences to come up with a final bill.

With congress adjourned for its Easter break, staffers will keep
negotiating. But the committee won’t take up public discussion of
the bill until April 9.

Underestimated

Observers say much of the delay has centered around the cost of
the Senate bill. The Congressional Budget Office underestimated
this bill by $6.3 billion. The conference committee had to find
ways to trim the cost.

The committee did this, though, and agreed on a funding framework
for the bill before the Easter break.

So when they pick it back up April 9, they can tackle “in
earnest” some of the differences in provisions, said Don Shurley,
an Extension Service economist with the UGA College of
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

However, it’s still unclear whether a new farm bill will be
passed before farmers begin planting their crops. The current
farm bill still has one more year. It would cover this growing
season if no new farm bill is passed.

So farmers don’t know if they should decide what or how much to
grow this year on the old farm bill or on the new, unfinished
one. They’re cutting it close.

Tough on Georgia

This is particularly tough for Georgia farmers, who plant their
biggest crops mainly in May. Because of the climate, Georgia
farmers can plant earlier than many U.S. farmers.

“Also, unlike, say, Midwest farmers, this new farm bill has some
critical issues unique to Southern growers,” Shurley said.

Georgia farmers depend greatly on cotton and peanuts, two crops
sensitive to the final wording in the new farm bill.

Because a new farm bill is bound to be passed sooner or later, it
would be better to get one passed for this season, said UGA
Extension Service peanut economist Nathan Smith. It would help
some peanut farmers economically.

A new farm bill this year would be better for Georgia cotton
farmers, too. It could mean a difference of as much as 10 cents
per pound in program payments — a considerable amount, Shurley
said.

House and senate versions differ on payment limitations for
farmers, conservation payments and the establishment or updating
of base acres, or the average number of yield and acres of a
particular crop grown on a farm. Subsidies and payments are based
on this number.

After a bill is passed, the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture will then
have to write regulations to implement it. USDA is reportedly
already preparing these regulations to put the bill into practice
as soon as possible.