-
Establishment of the U.S. Department of Agriculture
The USDA was created on December 3rd, 1861. This was the first of many measures affecting agriculture signed into law. Congress established this department to be headed by a commissioner. This act has remained the basic authority for the Department to the present time. -
USDA Bill Signed into Law
The bill that created the United States Department of Agriculture was signed into law by President Lincoln on May 15th,1862. He was given much-unsolicitied advice, particularly concerning the appointment of a Commissioner for the newly-created department. Aside from any direction he received, Lincoln chose a man that had already proven himself. Farmer Isaac Newton had served as the chief in the agricultural section of the Patent Office since August of 1861. -
Agricultural Adjustment Act
The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) was signed into law by President Franklin Roosevelt on May 12th, 1933. Some of the goals set forth by this act include limiting crop production, reducing stock numbers, and refinancing mortgages, aiding the already struggling farmers in keeping their operations. -
A New AAA
Through the years, Congress had a chance to review the Agricultural Adjustment Act and highlighted a few issues within the bill. In 1938, a new enactment was enacted that remedied the matters set forth by Congress between 1933 and 1938. Crop insurance was an added provision in this recent enactment. As we have seen throughout this course, crop insurance is almost necessary for most farmers, as it is constantly a part of their operating budget. Congress added a provision for crop insurance -
Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002
The Farm Security Act of 2002 was officially signed on May 13th, 2002. This law can be considered a side-by-side comparison of the farm legislation from 1996 to 2001. One aspect of this bill includes Marketing Assistance Loans and Loan Deficiency Payment. This subtitle of this bill allows the Secretary to make nonrecourse loans to producers of specified commodities through the crop year of 2007. -
Peanut Section of the 2002 Farm Bill
In addition to the previously mentioned information about the 2002 farm bill; among other specific crops, peanuts were specifically stated. Provisions were put into place to make direct payments to historic peanut farmers, and for each of the 2003 through 2007 crop years. It was established that the payment rate would be $36 per ton. It also authorized producers to elect 50 percent advance payments. -
Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018
The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, also referred to as the 2018 Farm Act, was signed into law on 12/20/2018 and will remain in effect through 2023. While some significant changes were addressed in this bill, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will continue with only minor changes. All major conservation programs will continue under this bill; however, some are modified significantly -
2018 Farm Act Increases Spending
Compared to the previous farm act, the 2018 Farm Bill increased spending by $1.8 billion above the level projected for continuation. With this increase in funding, the 2018 Farm Act will fund nutrition programs; nine percent will fund crop insurance programs, seven percent will fund conservation programs, an additional seven percent will fund agriculture commodity programs, while the remaining one percent will fund all other programs such as trade and credit, to name a few.
