Farm bill extension leaves La. farmers uncertain about future

Farmers are disappointed that Congress couldn’t pass a new farm bill in 2012 and instead extended the 2008 farm bill, which technically expired in September, says the LSU AgCenter. Mike Salassi, an economist at the AgCenter, says the extension puts farmers in a difficult position as they make planting decisions for this year. “We have enough risk in crop production and agriculture, and having so much uncertainty about the farm program just adds to that,” Salassi says. The extension was passed along with the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, legislation aimed at avoiding the so-called fiscal cliff. The legislation extends current commodity programs including direct payments, which benefit many of Louisiana’s row crop farmers. “Last fall up through December, when the House and Senate were putting together a new farm bill proposal, none of those included direct payments,” Salassi says. “All of them wanted to get rid of it.” The bill extension also left out some conservation programs and disaster relief programs, says AgCenter economist Kurt Guidry. “Programs such as the Grassland Reserve Program and the Wetlands Reserve Program were not reauthorized,” Guidry says. “Some disaster programs were authorized in the bill, but not with any mandatory funding.” The extension will expire at the end of September. Salassi says there will be plenty of pressure on Congress to pass a new farm bill this year.