By Carah Hart (Brownfield)
An ag lobbyist says the change in Congressional control could complicate efforts to pass major legislation during the upcoming lame-duck session.
Randy Russell with the Russell Group tells Brownfield it’s likely going to be a shorter session with fewer policies being addressed.
“If you’re the Democrats and the leadership in the new Congress, where you know you’re going to have pretty wide margins and will be controlling the committee gavels in early January, besides dealing with the government funding bill, which expires December 11, the question is: what else could potentially get done?”
Russell says the farm bill is one piece of legislation that could still move, with lawmakers potentially reaching an agreement on state cost-sharing requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
“I think both governor-elect Amy Klobuchar on the Senate Ag Committee and Angie Craig on the House Ag Committee have been clear they need a two-year extension. I think they are in a prime position to get it. And if they don’t get it now, they will certainly try to impose that next year.”
Even if lawmakers can strike a deal on SNAP cost-sharing, Russell says farm bill passage isn’t guaranteed.
He believes President Trump would sign nationwide, year-round E15 legislation if Congress gets it across the finish line. Russell says it’s also too early to know whether additional farmer aid will be included in any year-end legislation.
Congress returns to Washington D.C. on Monday.
