GOP-led House narrowly passes farm bill

Updated: 6:40 p.m. | Posted: 4 p.m.

The Republican-led House has narrowly passed a sweeping farm bill that would toughen work requirements for food stamp recipients.

The bill passed by a vote of 213-211. Democrats unanimously opposed the measure, saying it would toss too many people off government food assistance. But 20 Republicans also voted no, giving GOP leaders a brief scare in what was their second attempt to pass a farm bill. In May, they suffered an embarrassing setback when 30 GOP members opposed passage in an effort to get a vote on immigration legislation.

The measure renews the safety net for farmers at a time when President Donald Trump's tough talk on tariffs threatens to close off foreign markets for many of their products.

The votes come as many farmers are struggling to make money.

Prices for agricultural commodities like corn, soybeans and milk are at or below the cost of production. Minnesota Farm Bureau President Kevin Paap said the House passage of the measure was crucial to renewing several farmer support programs.

"We've got serious economic challenges facing farmers, and appreciate we're one step closer to having a farm bill done on time," said Paap.

The House bill sets up a certain clash with the Senate, which is looking to make mostly modest adjustments to existing agriculture programs in its bill without picking a fight over food stamps.

Rep. Mike Conaway, the Republican chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, said he believed there were concerns among some GOP lawmakers about the amount of spending in the bill as well as changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

"I knew it was going to be razor-thin," Conaway said of the vote.

The bill requires able-bodied adults aged 18-59 to work or participate in job training for 20 hours a week in order to receive food stamp benefits that average about $450 a month for a family of four. Government auditors estimate that in 10 years, the SNAP caseload would shrink by about 1.2 million people in an average month if the bill becomes law.

The top Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee, Minnesota Rep. Collin Peterson, predicts those changes to the food stamp program will run into trouble in the Senate.

"The senators that are running the show over there have told me they're not doing any of this SNAP stuff that the house put in the bill and I agree with that," said Peterson. "How we put a bill together that we can get the House Republicans to support, that's going to be the challenge."

Peterson said if the two legislative bodies fail to work out their differences over the food stamp program, there may not be a farm bill passed this year, adding that if that happens the old program will likely get a short-term extension.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said the changes will "close the skills gap, better equip our workforce, and encourage people to move from welfare to work, so more Americans have the opportunity to tap into the economic prosperity we're seeing right now."

The legislation has traditionally been bipartisan, blending support from urban Democrats supporting nutrition programs with farm-state lawmakers supporting crop insurance, farm credit, and land conservation. The Senate earlier this month unveiled a budget-neutral and bipartisan bill. A Senate committee approved the legislation last week, 20-1.

Although the House bill broke from that bipartisan convention, its position on work requirements for SNAP recipients is consistent with the Trump administration's priorities. Earlier this year, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to enforce existing work requirements and review all programs, waivers and exemptions.

The measure also limits circumstances under which families who qualify for other poverty programs can automatically be eligible for SNAP, and earmarks $1 billion to expand work training programs.

Democrats have expressed outrage over the bill, with Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi calling it "cruel and destructive."

Peterson said the bill "simply doesn't do enough for the people it's supposed to serve."

"It still leaves farmers and ranchers vulnerable, it worsens hunger and it fails rural communities," Peterson said.

MPR News reporter Mark Steil contributed to this report.