News

Trump budget proposes crop insurance changes

 

The budget proposed by President Donald Trump suggests significant changes to the USDA’s crop insurance program.  According to the White House budget document, Trump would improve commodity programs and crop insurance while maintaining a strong safety net.

Trump’s proposal would reduce crop insurance premium subsidies from an average of 62% to 48% for farmers with a gross income of less than $500,000 dollars.  Producers making more would not qualify for subsidies.  The White House also wants to limit underwriting gains for insurance companies to 12%.

The USDA portion of the President’s budget plan also calls for focusing federal conservation efforts on sensitive land, spending 53 million dollars on rural broadband grants and loans, making 24 billion available for rural home loans and another 8 billion for farm operating loans.

The Trump budget plan proposes moving the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility from the Department of Homeland Security to the USDA, along with 42 million dollars to operate it, but there’s no mention creating or funding an FMD vaccination bank requested by some agriculture organizations.