Farm Bill Progress and FY2027 Markups
APPROPRIATIONS UPDATE
House Advances FY2027 Spending Bills as DHS Funding Uncertainty Continues
The House Appropriations Committee is moving forward on Fiscal Year 2027 spending bills, with several subcommittee markups underway this week.
On Thursday, the House Appropriations Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) Subcommittee met to consider its FY2027 bill, which was approved by the subcommittee. The bill provides a total discretionary funding allocation of $25.3 billion, cutting approximately $1 billion from the FY2026 allocation.
Chairman Dave Joyce (OH-14) framed the legislation as a continuation of efforts to "cut government spending, leverage technology, strengthen national security, and crack down on waste, fraud, abuse, and improper payments." Key provisions include: strengthening cybersecurity infrastructure, maintaining Buy American requirements, prohibiting the development of a U.S. Central Bank Digital Currency, and codifying several Trump administration executive orders.
The full committee is scheduled to take up the FSGG bill on Tuesday, April 21, with a continuation if needed on Wednesday, April 22.
On the broader appropriations front, the schedule remains complicated. Lawmakers are continuing negotiations over longer-term funding for the Department of Homeland Security following the partial shutdown, while they remain engaged in discussions over a second reconciliation package. Members will be away for a district recess during the first week of May, adding pressure to get movement underway.
FARM BILL UPDATE
House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn "GT" Thompson (R-PA) is pushing to bring the farm bill to a full House floor vote before the end of April. The House Rules Committee signaled it could meet the week of April 27 to set floor consideration, and members have until noon on Wednesday, April 22 to submit amendments.
The bill cleared the House Agriculture Committee in March on a 34-17 vote, with all Republicans and seven Democrats in support, following partisan clashes over food assistance cuts, ethanol policy, California's Proposition 12 animal welfare standard, and pesticide liability protections. Thompson has been working to shore up support ahead of the floor vote, noting that some committee members from both sides of the aisle are helping with outreach. He expects at least the seven Democrats who voted for it in committee to support it on the floor and suggests that the number could be higher. The seven Democrats who supported the bill in committee are Reps. Jim Costa (CA), Sharice Davids (KS), Don Davis (NC), Adam Gray (CA), Kristen McDonald Rivet (MI), Josh Riley (NY), and Gabe Vasquez (NM).
Resistance persists from some corners. Ranking Member Angie Craig (MN) has called the measure a "shell of a farm bill," and some Republicans, particularly those aligned with states' rights and Make America Healthy Again priorities, have objected to the Proposition 12 and pesticide preemption provisions. Thompson has acknowledged these are the biggest sticking points but says they are more of a "Senate side" issue.
On that front, Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman (R-AR) says a bipartisan "skinny farm bill" is taking shape in the Senate, with staff and members actively working to build support.
Boozman expressed confidence a farm bill will get done this year, saying he intends to take Thompson's House version as a starting point and make limited adjustments to produce an agreed-upon product that can move quickly. There is no set timeline yet for a Senate Agriculture Committee markup.
Thompson has also floated figures as high as $20 billion in additional farm aid, $10 billion for row crop producers and $10 billion for specialty crop growers, plus $200 million for forestry and sawmill infrastructure to help farmers navigate surging input costs. Senate Ag Appropriations Subcommittee Chair John Hoeven (R-ND) has indicated he is looking at roughly $17 billion in that range, with the exact allocation still being worked out. A supplemental spending bill is seen as the most likely vehicle, potentially to be paired with disaster aid funding for California wildfire losses to attract bipartisan support