Most Recent Talking Points as of 8/10/23

Note: For IFB’s full comprehensive talking points, please contact your local county Farm Bureau or visit the Leaders’ Portal.

2023 Farm Bill Update and Talking Points

Farm Bill Cost (May, 2023)

The Congressional Budget Office’s most recent baseline for Farm Programs projects is $1.5 trillion total cost.
- Nutrition (SNAP) $1,223.1 billion (81%)
- Crop Insurance $101.3 billion (7%)
- Commodity Programs $65.7 billion (5%)
- Inflation Reduction Act, $34.7 billion (2%)
- Other* $19.7 billion (1%) (includes other spending such as trade programs, horticulture programs, and CCC administration costs
Compared to 2018 Farm Bill: $867 billion (original estimated 2018 farm bill cost)
- Nutrition (SNAP), $663.8 billion (77%)
- Crop Insurance, $77.9 billion (9%)
- Commodity Programs, $61.4 billion (7%)
- Conservation Programs, $59.7 billion (7%)
- Other, $4.3 billion

Headline Messages:

Managing risk on the farm is critical to keeping food on our tables. We all depend on the success of American agriculture, so it’s important for America’s farmers to be supported by strong farm programs as they face weather disasters, high supply costs and inflationary pressures.
America’s public investment in agriculture through farm bill programs helps secure our food supply and keep our country strong with sustainable food, fiber and renewable fuel.
The farm bill impact extends beyond the farm by protecting our nation’s food supply, providing access to nutrition for families facing hunger, advancing conservation efforts and spurring innovation through agricultural research.

IFB Priorities:

Illinois Farm Bureau members believe the farm bill must be WTO-compliant, provide price and revenue protection for farmers, and link nutrition and commodity programs.
Maintaining the current crop insurance program remains IFB’s top priority in the upcoming farm bill debate.
Farm Bureau supports maintaining both SNAP and TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program) in the farm bill in their current form.
In 2013, USDA calculated that roughly eight cents of every dollar spent on food purchases (including purchases made by SNAP recipients) returns to the farmgate.

Agriculture Labor Reform & Immigration

Source: American Farm Bureau Federation, AFBF Farm Labor Study: AFBF_LaborStudy_Feb2014.pdf

Headline Messages:

Farmers need a reliable, skilled workforce. Farm work is challenging, often seasonal and transitory, and with fewer and fewer Americans growing up on the farm, it’s increasingly difficult to find American workers attracted to these kinds of jobs.
Farm labor can’t all be replaced by machines. There are certain farm jobs, like tending livestock and pruning or picking fresh produce, that require a human touch.
Where American workers are unwilling or unavailable, workers from other countries have provided crucial support to American agriculture.
Congress needs to pass responsible immigration reform that addresses agriculture’s current experienced workforce and creates a new flexible guest worker program.
Instability in the agriculture workforce places domestic food production at risk – increasing immigration enforcement without also reforming our worker visa program could cost America $70 billion in agriculture production.

Renewable Energy and Utility Projects & Landowner Protections

Headline Messages:

Illinois Farm Bureau routinely hosts landowner meetings for members potentially impacted by carbon capture and storage pipeline projects, as well as other renewable energy and utility projects proposed across the state.
These educational meetings for our members help them understand basic details about proposed projects, how to work through the approval process, and the easement negotiation process.
It is our mission to provide our members with quality information and resources. We continue to provide educational outreach as additional project details emerge.
Also, we often participate in the regulatory approval process to ensure they follow legal requirements and to protect landowner rights.
Always remember to take the time to have all documents reviewed by and seek advice from an attorney.

General Inflation Talking Points

Source: USDA, University of Illinois, FarmWeek, Illinois Farm Bureau

Headline Messages:

Farmers aren’t alone in facing a tough economy, but many family farms are struggling to hang on in the face of skyrocketing input costs.
Like consumers, farmers are price-takers not price-makers.
While some commodity prices are rising, farmers are being hit by circumstances beyond their control – supply and labor cost increases and drought to name a few.

General inflation is a long-term problem, which we expect to put pressure on our wallets and create price uncertainty for the next few years.
The ripple effects of the war in Ukraine, and general supply and supply chain issues add to the challenges of ensuring the security of the global food supply.
The impacts of inflation and global disputes on our food supply create added pressure to make sure we get it right when it comes to the 2023 farm bill.

Farm Input Hikes (Aug. 9, 2023)

According to the USDA, total farm production expenditures in 2022 rose to $452.7 billion, up from $392.9 billion in 2021.
Expenditure costs rose in every single category in 2022.
USDA estimates farmers will spend even more on input costs this year.
The four largest expenditures for U.S. farmers in 2022 accounted for 48.5% of total farm input costs:
- Feed (18.5%)
- Farm services (10.8%)
- Livestock, poultry and related expenses (10.1%)
- Labor (9.2%)
Combined crop inputs (chemicals, fertilizer and seeds) accounted for 31.4% ($73.4 billion) of expenses. Top expenses on livestock farms (feed) accounted for 37% of costs ($81 billion) in 2022.
Farm returns are down considerably from 2022. USDA’s most recent outlook projected a 16% decline in farm income this year.
In Illinois, recent U of I crop budgets estimate an operator and land return of $307 per acre in central Illinois, below the average cash rent in that area of $363 per acre.

Weather & Drought Monitoring

Latest Drought Monitor (Aug. 8, 2023)

2.1 million Illinois residents are in areas of drought, down 41.6% since last week.
Illinois ended June 2023 as the 9^th driest June on record since 1895.
Illinois has experienced an active weather pattern in August with more rain expected.
Meteorologists expect to see some improvement in drought conditions, reflected in the next U.S. Drought Monitor.

Headline Messages:

Drought conditions persist across Illinois. Recent rains have helped a few areas, but we’re still a long way from harvest.
Every situation is different. How the drought affects farmers can depend on what they produce and where they are located, among several other variables.
At the end of the day, farmers want to produce a good crop. Drought is very discouraging for farmers.
Farmers are able to purchase crop insurance, which helps them remain afloat during times such as drought. However, it will never fully replace the loss of a good crop.
Drought is a complex physical and social phenomenon, usually with no clear beginning or end. It is often the result of many complex factors acting on and interacting with the environment.
Farmers are at the forefront of climate-smart farming, putting scientific solutions, technology, and innovation to work to protect our land, air, and water.

Heat Stress and Illness

Source: American Farm Bureau Federation

Headline Messages

Protecting farm workers from heat stress and illness is the right thing to do, and a priority for farmers as they seek to ensure their employees are taking proper precautions to work safely in all seasons.
Farmers take a variety of precautions to ensure workers avoid heat stress, such as shifting their work schedules to avoid the hottest hours of the day, encouraging employees to take breaks as needed, and providing shade and water.
The first and most effective actions to prevent heat stress come directly from farmers who see and know conditions firsthand, rather than one-size-fits-all government regulations that fail to recognize vastly different regions, seasons and crop-specific labor needs.
Prevention is the best remedy for heat-related illness. Resources and materials to educate farmers and farmworkers alike on the best practices to work safely in all conditions should be the focus, rather than government regulation and mandates.
The conditions in agricultural work are universally challenging, and no one understands this better than the American farmer. Farm families go above and beyond to ensure that their employees have the tools and protections they need as they work together to safely produce our nation’s food, fiber and fuel.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is already empowered to enforce existing standards related to heat stress and illness through the General Duty Clause in the OSHA Act of 1970.