USDA ERS · 2024–2025 reauthorization · Farm Bill

Farm Bill 2024–2025: current status & program spending

What the Farm Bill authorizes, where the latest reauthorization stands after the 2018 act and continuing resolutions, and how USDA ERS splits commodity, conservation, and disaster outlays since 2015.

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Farm-program split, FY2024 settled

In FY2024 the ERS farm-program series split $0.47B commodity (ARC+PLC), $4.34B conservation, and $5.19B disaster and emergency aid.

According to the USDA Economic Research Service Farm Income and Wealth Statistics.

$0.47B
ARC + PLC commodity payments
$4.34B
conservation payments
$5.19B
disaster and emergency aid

These are USDA ERS farm-program outlays, not the nutrition title (SNAP) that dominates Farm Bill authorization totals. Method: /methodology.

Farm Bill program payments since 2015

Billions of dollars, USDA ERS, by fiscal year

$0B$10B$20B$30B$40B 201520162017201820192020202120222023202420252026 $14.9B$5.29B$23.9B Disaster & emergencyConservationCommodity (ARC+PLC)

Conservation spending is the steadiest of the three farm-program streams; commodity (ARC/PLC) payments move with prices and yields, while disaster and emergency aid produces the largest spikes. FY2025–26 figures are USDA forecasts, not settled outlays.

Source: USDA ERS Farm Income and Wealth Statistics

Current Farm Bill status (2024–2025)

The 2018 Farm Bill (Agriculture Improvement Act) was the last completed reauthorization; its farm-program authorities expired in September 2023 and have since been extended by continuing resolutions while Congress negotiates a successor. As of August 2026 there is no new enacted Farm Bill: commodity reference prices, conservation funding levels, and SNAP policy remain the main negotiation points. The charts below use USDA ERS farm-program outlays through the latest settled fiscal year (FY2024) plus USDA forecasts where noted; they do not predict congressional outcomes.

What Is the Farm Bill?

The Farm Bill is the primary US agricultural and food policy legislation, renewed approximately every 5 years by Congress. It is one of the most sweeping pieces of federal legislation, covering everything from commodity price supports to nutrition assistance to rural broadband.

Despite its name, most Farm Bill spending goes to nutrition programs, about 76–80% of the total authorized spending funds SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly food stamps). Agricultural programs account for the remaining 20–24%.

What the Farm Bill Covers

Nutrition (Title IV)

~76% of spending

SNAP, TEFAP, SFMNP, and fresh-fruit programs. Food assistance for low-income households.

Commodity Programs (Title I)

~7% of spending

ARC, PLC, dairy programs, sugar program, and marketing loans for covered commodities.

Crop Insurance (Title XI)

~8% of spending

Premium subsidies, FCIP administration, and USDA RMA budget authorization.

Conservation (Title II)

~6% of spending

CRP, EQIP, CSP, ACEP, and working-lands conservation programs.

Other Titles

Trade (Title III), Credit (Title V), Rural Development (Title VI), Research (Title VII), Forestry (Title VIII), Energy (Title IX), Horticulture (Title X), Miscellaneous (Title XII).

A Brief History

1933 Agricultural Adjustment Act, first modern farm bill, created during the Great Depression to raise commodity prices
1949 Agricultural Act, established permanent law that still applies when Farm Bills expire (sets high price supports)
1973 Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act, shifted to deficiency payments, added food stamps
1996 FAIR Act ("Freedom to Farm") - decoupled payments from production, reduced supply controls
2002 Farm Security and Rural Investment Act, restored direct payments, added counter-cyclical payments
2008 Food, Conservation, and Energy Act, major conservation and energy programs expansion
2014 Agricultural Act, eliminated direct payments, created the ARC and PLC programs
2018 Agriculture Improvement Act, boosted conservation funding, expanded hemp production, modified ARC/PLC

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Farm Bill?

The Farm Bill is major legislation renewed ~every 5 years governing US agricultural and food policy. At $400–500B over 10 years, about 80% funds SNAP nutrition assistance. It authorizes ARC, PLC, CRP, crop insurance, and dozens of other programs.

When was the last Farm Bill passed?

The 2018 Farm Bill (Agriculture Improvement Act) was the most recent completed reauthorization, authorized through September 2023. It was extended while Congress negotiated a new bill. The 2024/2025 negotiations focused on commodity reference prices and conservation funding.

How much does the Farm Bill cost?

The 2018 Farm Bill was estimated at ~$428B over 10 years. About 76-80% goes to nutrition assistance (SNAP), 7-8% to commodity programs, 8-9% to crop insurance, and 6-7% to conservation. Cost varies with commodity prices and disaster frequency.

← How farm subsidies work Crop insurance explained →

Reading the ag-program split, not the whole bill

FY2024 split $0.47B commodity, $4.34B conservation, and $5.19B disaster aid, and none of that is the ~76-80% SNAP share that dominates the bill's own headline total.

  • The 2018 Farm Bill's agricultural authorities have run on continuing resolutions since 2023, watch for how reference prices, conservation funding, and SNAP policy resolve in the next reauthorization. Current status
  • Compare commodity, conservation, and disaster spending in your own state to see which title actually drives farm-program dollars where you are. Browse state payments
  • ARC and PLC (Title I commodity programs) work very differently from each other, see the direct comparison before assuming a Farm Bill mention applies to your operation. Read: ARC vs PLC

These are USDA ERS farm-program outlays only, not the nutrition title (SNAP) that dominates total Farm Bill authorization.

This guide is for informational purposes only. Program details and funding levels change with each Farm Bill reauthorization. For current program information, see USDA.gov.

This guide's Farm Bill payment-history chart renders live from USDA ERS farm-income data, the Farm Bill structure, title, and program-share figures in the text are editorially researched and written from public legislative and USDA sources, not pulled from a live database query. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.