"The House Agriculture committee is trying to fund its farm bill proposals with “counterfeit money,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told reporters Wednesday morning.

Vilsack spoke after a range of groups from across the political spectrum criticized House Republicans’ proposed farm bill, which seeks to direct tens of billions to subsidies for farmers of peanuts, rice and cotton.

House Agriculture Committee Chair Glenn Thompson (R-Pa.) told reporters these increases — which he said were necessary to make up for rising costs of inputs like fuel and fertilizer — would be paid for by freezing increases to food aid, and by cuts to the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC), which allows administrations to make emergency loans.

But Vilsack noted that the Congressional Budget Office has found these cuts — which are deeply unpopular among Democrats — fall well short of what is needed to pay for Thompson’s proposed increases."

Saul Elbein reports for The Hill May 22, 2024. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Sparks Fly Over SNAP At Partisan Markup Of House Farm Bill" (The Hill) [3]