U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood (R-IL) introduced the Lessening Regulatory Burdens on our Farmers Act of 2018, H.R. 4904, which he developed with input from farmers in his district.
“Our farmers are busy enough as it is without having to deal with more burdensome government red tape,” said Rep. LaHood.
The measure would direct the secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture to allow producers across the country to file a one-time contract for the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) commodity support federal programs. The ARC and PLC programs were created under the 2014 Farm Bill, which also contains sign-up requirements for both programs, according to Rep. LaHood’s office. While the ARC and PLC programs provide farmers with an appreciated and necessary safety net, the programs’ contractual sign-up rules also put needless regulatory weight on farmers, the congressman said.
“This bill is a common sense way to keep both our agriculture safety net strong, and streamline the requirements when signing-up for ARC or PLC,” Rep. LaHood said.
If enacted, H.R. 4904 would let farmers use a “one and done” filing for the length of the next Farm Bill’s five-year term as long as no changes are made to a farming operation, according to a summary from LaHood’s office.
“Our approach already has the support of the Illinois Farm Bureau and the American Farm Bureau, and is the product of months of work with my Agricultural Advisory Board to ensure that farmers in our district and across the country will receive the regulatory relief they need to be able to focus on farming,” LaHood said.
H.R. 4904 is awaiting consideration by the House Agriculture Committee.