House Passes Farm Bill Proposal, Appropriations Subcommittee Approves Legislation to Fund USDA And FDA

The end of April was a busy time in the U.S. House of Representatives. The chamber voted 224-200 to pass the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026, the House Committee on Agriculture’s Farm Bill proposal. Aside from the support that an updated Farm Bill would bring to the agriculture industry, the legislation maintains key ASTA priorities such as regulatory clarity for plant breeders, increased funding for trade promotion, and reauthorization of critical research, biotechnology, and plant health programs for several years.

You can read ASTA President and CEO Andy LaVigne’s statement in response to the bill’s passage here.

Separately, the House Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture passed legislation to fund the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). If this bill becomes law, it would cut spending for USDA and agencies such as the National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) and the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS). However, the bill would slightly increase funding for the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and the Advanced Agricultural Research Development Authority (AGARDA). This legislation remains several steps away from becoming law, and the Senate will pass its own legislation to fund USDA and FDA.