WASHINGTON, DC – Last week, the Senate Agriculture Committee held an oversight hearing examining how the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is addressing the challenges facing farmers, ranchers, and foresters while advancing policies to strengthen rural America. The hearing covered a wide range of current topics, including the New World screwworm and nutrition assistance, as well as issues related to the farm economy and increased fuel and fertilizer costs.
The hearing commenced with Chairman John Boozman’s (R-AR) delivering opening remarks, where he highlighted the critical investments made to strengthen the farm safety net as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). He also stressed that while these investments are historic, the perfect storm facing farmers necessitates additional economic assistance so farmers can realize these benefits later this fall.
“What I hear from Arkansas family farmers, and stakeholders from across the country, is that the farm economy is struggling,” said Boozman. “Producers continue to face high input costs, rising labor expenses, elevated interest rates, and market uncertainty. It is necessary that we work together to create an environment where agriculture can thrive and where the next generation sees farming, ranching, and forestry as viable and rewarding careers.”
Earlier this year, Senators Boozman and John Hoeven (R-ND) introduced a framework that, if enacted, would provide targeted relief and backstop the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) Program and help get farmers to the fall when the OBBBA improvements come into effect (see
USA Rice Daily, January 20, 2026)
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In Chairman Boozman’s opening remarks, he noted “Fertilizer remains one of the most significant input costs facing famers, and they are seeing dramatic rises in costs and are concerned about future availability. I remain committed to advancing the farm assistance package Senator Hoeven and I proposed in January. There are many additional challenges that have risen since then that demonstrate the urgency to provide our producers, including our specialty crop producers, with more support.”
Delivering testimony on behalf of the USDA was Secretary Brooke Rollins, who provided an update on the department's work over the past 15 months. Her remarks focused on the timely assistance delivered to farmers through the Emergency Commodity Assistance Program and the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program, which were chief priorities in providing short-term assistance, as well as on the critical steps being undertaken to implement the OBBBA.
In Secretary Rollins’ testimony, she noted that OBBBA “was the largest working-class tax cuts in history and championed several pro-farmer provisions, including historic reforms such as increasing reference prices for the first time in over a decade, improving crop insurance by enhancing coverage and lowering premiums, making the higher death tax exemption permanent for 2 million family farms, permanently doubling small business expensing under Section 179, and so much more.”
Following opening statements and Secretary Rollins’ testimony, Chairman Boozman’s second question to the secretary was on the need for additional economic assistance for farmers. The Chairman noted that President Donald Trump made comments supportive of additional assistance to farmers during a recent trip to Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, which could help alleviate some of the impacts of increased fuel and fertilizer prices resulting from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Chairman Boozman stressed the need and encouraged the secretary to ensure that agriculture is included in any forthcoming supplemental appropriations request to provide that additional layer of economic support during these challenging times. Secretary Rollins acknowledged that President Trump wanted to do more to help farmers and she looked forward to working arm in arm with the committee to reach a point where that is feasible.