Congress stayed up late, missed their deadline and temporarily shut down government but came together to help farmers across America with the passage of the Continuing Resolution. The bill third version of the bill, only 118 pages down from the 1,547 first version, passed the House of Representatives with a chippy 366-34 margin. It then went to the Senate where they finally voted after midnight Eastern time, where it was passed, 85-11. President Joe Biden signed the bill into law on Saturday.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, had been on thin ice with his party trying to ferry the bill through.
“We are really grateful that tonight, in a bipartisan fashion, with the overwhelming majority of votes, we passed the American Relief Act of 2025. This is a very important piece of legislation,” House Speaker Johnson told reporters after the vote. “It funds the government, of course, until March of 2025. That was a big priority for us.”
The bill includes $10 billion in economic aid to farmers and extends the 2018 Farm Bill, again, for one year through September 2025. Overall, the package includes $31 billion of aid. The aid could not have come at a better time for Delta farmers. High input costs and low commodity prices have strapped farmers, even those who had higher-than-normal yields. Frank Howell, Executive Director of Delta Council, notes that the aid helps farmers for the upcoming year.
“The assistance will be delivered in 90 days or less and is based on 2024 planted acres and each commodity had a price per acre based on research suggested. This is recognizing the $100s of dollars an acre that farmers lost in 2024,” Howell explained.
As farmers are already deep into planning their 2025 needs, the assistance is a relief and boost for them as they meet with their banks and lending partners.
“The fact that the lending community now knows the amounts the farmers will be receiving they can work with them better for 2025,” Howell said. “That was one of the main reasons why it was so important to get this assistance for January nailed down. There are a lot of folks on the margins and that little bit extra of assistance can determine if they get to continue farming in 2025 or not.”
Farmers apply through their local FSA (Farm Service Agency) office. Early versions of the bill included the following chart:
The payment rates are not final and are subject to USDA discretion, but estimates from House and Senate Agriculture Committee staff break down as follows for major crops:
- Corn, $43.80 per acre
- Soybeans, $30.61 per acre
- Wheat, $31.80 per acre
- Seed Cotton, $84.70 per acre
- Sorghum, $41.85 per acre
- Rice (L/M), $71.37 per acre
- Peanuts, $76.30 per acre
- Barley, $21.76 per acre
Those payments would be subject to $125,000 payment limits that could increase to $250,000 for producers who receive 75% or more of their gross income from farming.
