U.S. agriculture is still waiting for an updated farm bill after the 2018 bill was extended twice. Pieces of a new farm bill are moving through the budget reconciliation process. While it’s not the whole farm bill, Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins is glad to see at least some progress.

“I know that Senator Chairman John Bozeman and Chairman GT Thompson on the House side, Bozeman on the Senate side, alongside our White House, and I’m so grateful to many of my counterparts in the White House that have made the pieces of the farm bill that we believe are so important for a thriving farm economy. The fact that we haven’t had a farm bill, and the fact that the last administration didn’t get one done when they were supposed to has been devastating to a lot of our farmers, specifically with regards to reference prices, etc. So, we are encouraged.”

Despite the progress, it’s not a given that this will get through the Senate.

“You never know. This is true sausage making, but the President’s vision, I think, is reflected in the fact that some of those key parts of the Farm Bill are within this reconciliation process. Now, will it get to the very end? We’ll see. If it doesn’t, we’ll just move on to the farm bill, and the President’s committed to seeing that through with our farmers, and I think we’ll get a good result.”