Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, says Congress is going to have to pass another stopgap spending bill in September to keep the government funded into fiscal 2025, and she won’t be surprised if it includes a farm bill extension. Interviewed for this week’s Agri-Pulse Newsmakers, the House Ag Committee member says she doesn’t know how long the extension would run.
Congress effectively has until the end of the year to either pass a new farm bill or an extension. Otherwise, a permanent farm law would kick in that would force USDA in 2025 to start raising prices for milk and other commodities. The current, one-year extension was enacted last November.
Pingree voted against the GOP farm bill in committee and doesn’t believe it has the support to pass the full House. “I don't think that the votes are there yet,” she said.