Farm Bill: South vs. Midwest

The U.S. Senate is set to vote next week on its version of the Farm Bill. The legislation is pitting Midwestern lawmakers against Southern lawmakers over two competing subsidy programs that both say are essential to farmers in their regions.  The debate over the Farm Bill is always contentious. It usually pits Democrats against Republicans. But this issue has lawmakers from different regions battling each other. In the South, crops like rice and peanuts need a lot of water and fertilizer. Yields are comparatively steady but subject to steep fluctuations in world markets. In the fertile soils of the Midwest -- where corn and soy are king -- farmers need less fertilizer and irrigation but are more susceptible to bad weather conditions. The differences have led to a split between lawmakers vying for resources in the 2018 Farm Bill. "In Congress, you a lot about Democrats and Republicans fighting each other. You get into things like the Farm Bill and it doesn't have anything to do with Democrats and Republicans, it has to do with regional agriculture," explains Sen. John Boozman (R-AR). Sen. Boozman says his state relies on a program known as the PLC (Price Loss Coverage) that provides subsidies to farmers if crop prices drop. Farmers in the Midwest prefer the ARC (Agriculture Risk Coverage) program which bases its subsidies on crop revenues. During Farm Bill negotiations, Southern lawmakers say their Midwestern counterparts sought to boost the ARC program by depleting PLC."