One Big Beautiful Bill Act: Agricultural Provisions

By Daniel Munch and Samantha Ayoub

The House of Representatives’ advancement of H.R.1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” marks a significant step toward restoring longer-term certainty for farmers and ranchers after a series of short-term extensions of the 2018 farm bill. Reconciliation is a special legislative process that allows certain budget-related bills to pass with a simple majority in the Senate, bypassing the filibuster, making it a powerful tool for enacting key priorities. The bill combines several Farm Bureau-supported provisions, across commodity programs and tax policy, into one comprehensive package.

The bill comes amid continued debate over farm policy and persistent challenges in farm country, such as volatile markets, high production costs and weather disasters. While H.R.1 extends critical programs through 2031 and includes fresh investments in agriculture, the Senate is not required to take up the House version and may modify it significantly. As that process unfolds, farmers and ranchers are watching closely, urging lawmakers to retain and strengthen provisions that provide meaningful support for agriculture.

According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the House-passed version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act would increase agriculture-facing programs spending by $56.6 billion over the next decade (fiscal years 2025–2034). Of the total increase, $52.3 billion is tied to enhancements in the farm safety net, such as higher reference prices under Price Loss Coverage (PLC), adjusted formulas for Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC) and expanded crop insurance support. The remaining $4.3 billion includes investments in trade promotion, rural school funding, livestock biosecurity, research and energy programs (Figure 1).

Farm Bill Provisions (Title I, Subtitle B – Investment in Rural America): H.R.1 includes a broad reauthorization of the farm bill’s non-discretionary spending provisions, updating and funding many core agriculture titles through 2031. Important provisions include:

Safety Net (Commodity Programs and Crop Insurance): extension of key commodity support programs – including PLC, ARC, marketing assistance loans and Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) – through the 2031 crop year, avoiding any lapse into outdated “permanent” farm law. The bill raises statutory reference prices (price guarantees) for major covered commodities by 11-21%. Additionally, H.R.1 introduces a reference price escalator mechanism beginning in the 2031 crop year, which increases reference prices by 0.5% annually on a compounded basis. This increase is capped at 115% of the original statutory value, allowing modest growth to reflect longer-term market trends while avoiding unchecked program expansion.