Editor's Note: This story was updated at 8:43 a.m. Dec. 20. The payment rate for cotton in the chart is updated to fix a reporting error. The correct payment rate for cotton is estimated at $84.70 per acre. DTN regrets the error.
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OMAHA (DTN) -- The House voted down a funding bill on Thursday evening even after President-elect Donald Trump declared his support for the new package.
The House rejected the bill, a Continuing Resolution (CR) on a 174-235 vote. The bill would have funded the federal government through mid-March and provided needed disaster aid and economic assistance for farmers.
Trump had declared his support for new package after some tweaks that including the suspension of the federal debt limit until 2027.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., brought the bill to the floor under a suspension rule, meaning it needed a two-thirds vote to pass. Instead, 38 Republicans joined 197 Democrats to vote against the bill in a 235 to 174 vote. Just two Democrats backed the bill with 172 Republicans.
On the floor, Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, who was yielded time by Democrats, criticized the bill as "shameful" and waiving the debt ceiling for two years would add $4 trillion in debt.
"Here we sit in the same mess," Roy said.
The federal government risks shutting down at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday without a new funding bill in place.
In the floor debate, members of each party accused the other side for risking a shutdown. Democrats blamed Republicans for breaking the earlier deal while Republicans said Democrats would be the ones voting against a bill to keep the government operating.
"If you vote no, you are voting to shut down the government. If you vote no, you are voting not helping people in a difficult circumstance. If you vote no, you are voting against helping farmers and ranchers at a difficult time," said Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. Still, 38 GOP members also voted against the bill.
The trimmed-down CR still included a major disaster aid package. The new version of the bill maintained $30.78 billion in aid to farmers for both natural disasters and economic challenges. The bill also extended the 2018 farm bill through the end of September 2025.
Among the key provisions cut from the larger bill, however, was the provision to allow year-round 15% ethanol blends. Ethanol groups had praised the inclusion in the earlier bill. It's unclear why it was dropped.
Overall, the bill would the federal government operating through mid-March. That would give the incoming Trump administration time to weigh in on fiscal 2025 spending and potential cuts. The new version of the bill was significantly smaller than the original.
On Truth Social, Trump praised the agreement and highlighted the inclusion of aid to farmers in the deal. He called on Republicans to back the deal.
"Speaker Mike Johnson and the House have come to a very good Deal for the American People. The newly agreed to American Relief Act of 2024 will keep the Government open, fund our Great Farmers and others, and provide relief for those severely impacted by the devastating hurricanes.
"A VERY important piece, VITAL to the America First Agenda, was added as well -- The date of the very unnecessary Debt Ceiling will be pushed out two years, to January 30, 2027. Now we can Make America Great Again, very quickly, which is what the People gave us a mandate to accomplish.
"All Republicans, and even the Democrats, should do what is best for our Country, and vote 'YES' for this Bill, TONIGHT!"
Trump want Congress to waive the debt ceiling so that his administration will not have to deal with the possible leverage a debt-ceiling debate could provide to Democrats.
ECONOMIC AID DETAILS
The bill provides $10 billion in economic assistance through a formula laid out in the bill. The legislation creates one-time payments to producers based on 100% of planted acres and 50% of prevented-planting acres for the 2024 crop year.
The payment rates are not final and are subject to USDA discretion, but estimates from House and Senate Agriculture committee staff break down as follows for major crops:
-- Corn, $43.80 per acre.
-- Soybeans, $30.61 per acre.
-- Wheat, $31.80 per acre.
-- Seed Cotton, $84.70 per acre.
-- Sorghum, $41.85 per acre.
-- Rice, $71.37 per acre.
Those payments would be subject to $125,000 payment limits that could increase to $250,000 for producers who receive 75% or more of their gross income from farming.
DISASTER AID DETAILS
The bill provides $20.78 billion to help producers with disaster losses during the past two years.
The disaster funds would cover losses from an array of natural disasters in 2023 and 2024 -- droughts, wildfires, hurricanes, floods, derechos, excessive heat, tornados, winter storms, freeze events and excessive moisture.
Among those funds, $2 billion is set aside for livestock producers impacted by losses in 2023-24 due to drought, wildfires and floods. Assistance could go to the states as block grants and direct compensation to producers.
The bill also increases payments and losses covered under the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP).
Another $220 million is provided as block grants to eligible states to provide compensation to producers for crop, timber and livestock losses. This money would go to states that had net farm income of less than $250 million in 2023, fewer than 8,000 farms and average farm size of fewer than 1,000 acres.
ONE-YEAR FARM BILL EXTENSION
The bill also provides an extension of the current farm bill through Sept. 30, 2025.
The extension was critical to prevent farm policy from reverting to permanent law provisions.
The House Agriculture Committee Republicans on X noted, "Congress MUST extend the 2018 Trump farm bill. Failure to do so catapults food prices, compromises family farmers, and reverts back to FDR policies that will destroy rural America."
The bill also provides an extension of the current farm bill through Sept. 30, 2025. That prevents permanent law from going into effect on Jan. 1, 2025. The "dairy cliff" is often mentioned as the biggest issue with permanent law. Under the law, USDA would be required to buy dairy products to help boost prices to the mandated levels of 117% higher than the current all-milk price. At current prices, around $20.38 per cwt, the mandated price for milk would jump to more than $44.22 per cwt. This would effectively drive private buyers of milk out of the market.
The National Milk Producers Federation added, "A #FarmBill extension is critical to providing dairy farmers with certainty they need to navigate the year ahead. Congress must act to support America's farmers and rural communities."
A DAY OF SOCIAL MEDIA BACK AND FORTH
Trump weighed in throughout the day. Earlier on Truth Social, he had called for "shutting the Government down for a period of time" to teach Democrats who won the election.
On the debt limit, at least some Democrats agreed with Trump. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., posted on X, "I agree with President-elect Trump that Congress should terminate the debt limit and never again govern by hostage taking."
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, though, on Bluesky posted, "GOP extremists want House Democrats to raise the debt ceiling so that House Republicans can lower the amount of your Social Security check. Hard pass."
Stressing the importance of disaster aid, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., had a stack of comments from North Carolina residents he planned to read on the Senate floor to keep his colleagues in Washington with a filibuster if necessary. Tillis said he agreed with Trump's criticisms of the CR, but the disaster funding needs to be passed.
"I'm just saying to my colleagues, don't forget that people have been affected by these storms. Their future is literally in your hands."
For more, see "Trump, Vance and Musk Press to Kill Overall Federal Spending Bill, Risking Aid to Farmers" here: https://www.dtnpf.com/….
Also see "Farmers to Get Nearly $31 Billion Amid Year-End Legislative Push" here: https://www.dtnpf.com/….
Chris Clayton can be reached at Chris.Clayton@dtn.com
Follow him on social platform X @ChrisClaytonDTN
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