Senate OKs farm aid; fight seen in House
The vote was 66-27. Included were sugar supports that Pa. and N.J. senators oppose.
WASHINGTON - The Senate on Monday passed a five-year, half-trillion-dollar farm bill that expands government subsidies for crop insurance, rice, and peanuts while making small cuts to food stamps.
The bill passed on a bipartisan 66-27 vote. The legislation, which costs almost $100 billion annually, also would eliminate subsidies that are paid to farmers whether they farm or not. All told, it would save about $2.4 billion a year on the farm and nutrition programs, including across-the-board cuts that took effect earlier this year.
Senate Agriculture Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D., Mich.) said the bill would support 16 million jobs, save taxpayers billions, and put into place "the most significant reforms to agriculture programs in decades." It would still subsidize corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, rice, sugar, and other major crops grown by U.S. farmers.
All six Philadelphia-area senators voted to approve the bill, except Pat Toomey (R., Pa.), who voted no.
Senators from Pennsylvania and New Jersey fought to phase out sugar supports, saying they hurt those who manufacture with sugar, including candymakers.
The legislation would also set policy for programs to protect environmentally sensitive land, international food aid, and other projects to help rural communities. The Senate passed a similar farm bill last year.
House Speaker John A. Boehner said Monday that his chamber would take up its version this month. Debate there is expected to be much more partisan than in the Senate, with disagreements in the GOP caucus over domestic food aid that makes up almost 80 percent of the bill's cost.
Last year, the House declined to take up the legislation during an election year amid conflict over how much should be cut from the food-stamp program, which serves one in seven Americans and cost almost $80 billion last year. That cost has more than doubled since 2008.
The bill approved by the House Agriculture Committee last month would make much larger cuts to food stamps than the Senate version. The Senate bill would cut the food-stamp program by about $400 million a year, or half a percent. The House bill would cut the program by $2 billion a year, or a little more than 3 percent, and make it more difficult for some people to qualify.
On the Senate floor, senators rejected amendments on food-stamp cuts, preserving the $400 million annual decrease.
Senators looking to pare back subsidies did win one victory, an amendment to reduce the government's share of crop-insurance premiums for farmers with adjusted gross incomes topping $750,000. Sens. Richard J. Durbin (D., Ill.) and Tom Coburn (R., Okla.) said their amendment would affect about 20,000 farmers.