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Page 14 %u2022 The Midwest Cattleman %u2022 January 2025Hammershown withoptional NitroGrit%u2122Carbide.%u00aeCall 573-578-3086John BarnhartVienna, MOFor Sale%uf0ab%uf0ab%uf0ab%uf0abYoung 2nd Stage Angus CowsAll Vaccinations, Wormed and Ultrasound Preg CheckedREAUTHORIZATION OF FARM BILLGOP Governors UrgeBy Cami Koons via Michigan Advance | Successful FarmingIowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, along with governors from 16 other states, signed a joint letter Monday urging Congress to reauthorize the Farm Bill and to provide %u201cimmediate financial assistance%u201d to the agricultural sector.%u201cOur nation%u2019s agriculture industry is in trouble and if meaningful support is not provided soon, the well-being of the nation is at risk,%u201d the letter read.The Farm Bill was last authorized in 2018, and after failing to reauthorize it on the typical five-year schedule in 2023, Congress extended the 2018 bill through the 2024 fiscal and crop year.Congress failed again in the 2024 regular session to pass a new Farm Bill, which allocates funding for agricultural and food programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Now U.S. lawmakers weigh the option to pass another extension of the bill, or rush to finish a new version during the lame duck session, before final provisions of the extension expire at the end of the year and new members are sworn in on Jan. 3.The group of GOP governors is asking Congress to pass a new version of the massive bill rather than extend the %u201coutdated%u201d 2018 bill another year.The letter said the current Farm Bill has left farmers to operate %u201cunder a framework that is no longer viable.%u201dThe governors pointed to inflation, high input costs, high interest rates, natural disasters, and agricultural trade deficits as %u201cpowerful headwinds%u201d the sector has faced since the expiration of the 2018 Farm Bill.%u201cAnother year-long extension will leave farmers working under an outdated plan as they continue to face evolving challenges in today%u2019s agricultural landscape,%u201d the letter said.In mid-November, Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Michigan, chair of the Senate committee on agriculture, nutrition and forestry, issued an updated version of the %u201cRural Prosperity and Food Security Act%u201d from earlier in the year that could serve as a new Farm Bill, if passed.The updates include $39 billion in new resources for farmers, families participating in the SNAP program and rural communities, according to its summary.Republican lawmakers have been unsupportive of the bill, with reports of House representatives rejecting it and Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas calling it %u201cnot a sincere or transparent effort to address the urgent needs of rural America.%u201dPhoto: Adobestock.com