Negotiations continue about the details of the Farm Bill, including the amount of nutrition assistance via SNAP and commodity support.  The House and Senate conferees meet today to determine if there is any room for a deal.  Items that may be of interest, in no particular order:

• Payment limits are on the table.
• Sen. Grassley (R – Iowa) is not giving up on passing a Farm Bill in 2013.  Sen. Grassley stated that he won’t give up until December 19.
• However, Rep. Lucas, head of the conference committee, has stated that a vote on a new Farm Bill may not occur until January 2014, even if an agreement is made in December.
• If the current Farm Bill is extended, it will not provide any assistance to South Dakota ranchers affected by the October blizzard.
• There are disagreements among commodity groups concerning the farmer safety net.
• This is a succinct explanation of the “dairy cliff” if there is no Farm Bill (either new or extended).

At this point, it is unknown how negotiations will progress today.  When more information becomes available, we will let you know.