Farm Commodity Programs: A Short Primer (CRS Report for Congress)
| Release Date |
Revised Feb. 7, 2005 |
| Report Number |
RS20848 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Geoffrey S. Becker, Resources, Science, and Industry Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
| Older Revisions |
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Summary:
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is required by law to subsidize approximately two dozen specified agricultural commodities. Several permanent statutes provide the basic authority for these subsidies; more recent multi-year farm bills shape their operation and funding levels. The most recent omnibus farm bill is the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (P.L.107-171). However, Congress since FY1989 has also passed 30 appropriations, authorization, or farm disaster acts adding approximately $53 billion in supplemental funding for USDA farm and related programs (through October 2004). [â¦] USDA commodity and price support programs represent the heart of U.S. farm policy, by virtue of their long history and cost. Net outlays for the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC), USDA's program financing mechanism, have averaged nearly $15 billion annually from FY1995 to FY2004.1 Standing authority for USDA-CCC programs is provided mainly by three permanent laws: the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 (P.L. 75-430), the Agricultural Act of 1949 (P.L. 81-439), and the CCC Charter Act of 1948 (P.L. 80-806). Congress frequently alters provisions of these laws through omnibus, multi-year farm bills, and through various budget measures. The most recent omnibus farm law is the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (P.L.107-171). This law is effective through 2007.
