House GOP may split Farm Bill, separating nutrition and food stamps from agriculture programs

Eric Cantor

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), who played a significant role in the defeat of that chamber's farm bill, is leading a drive to split the bill into two parts, "so that the nutrition title and food stamps funding can each be considered on its own," David Rogers reports for Politico. The move follows the agenda of outside conservative groups, but "Speaker John Boehner’s office signaled Thursday that he also is open to the two-bill strategy and a final decision will be made after the July 4 recess."

"For Boehner and larger American agriculture interests, the two-bill approach represents a major challenge: Do they allow themselves to be whittled down more from the right or embrace a larger reform agenda that rebuilds the old urban-rural coalition more from the middle?" Rogers writes. Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-Ind.) told him, “It’s simple: Farm policy and food stamp policy are different. The House should consider them separately. We have an opportunity to make common-sense reforms by splitting the bill into a real, farm-only farm bill and having an honest conversation about how Washington spends taxpayer money.”

The Senate, which passed its farm bill earlier this month, "treated food stamps and commodity programs together as a whole — much as they have been for decades," Rogers reports. "The food-stamps fight has dominated farm bill politics to date. But last week’s floor debate also reflected a bipartisan appetite for more reforms in crop insurance and international food aid — a path that could attract votes from both sides of the aisle. It is possible that the food-stamp issue has become so toxic that Democrats will be reluctant to come on board. But they, like agriculture, have a stake in keeping alive the partnership that has worked so long." (Read more)