Agriculture and Related Agencies:
FY2019 Appropriations

Updated January 3, 2019
Congressional Research Service
https://crsreports.congress.gov
R45230

Agriculture and Related Agencies: FY2019 Appropriations

Summary
The Agriculture appropriations bill funds the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) except for
the Forest Service. It also funds the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and—in even-
numbered fiscal years—the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Agriculture appropriations include both mandatory and discretionary spending. Discretionary
amounts, though, are the primary focus during the bill’s development. The largest discretionary
spending items are the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children
(WIC); agricultural research; FDA; rural development; foreign food aid and trade; farm assistance
programs; food safety inspection; conservation; and animal and plant health programs. The main
mandatory spending items are the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), child
nutrition, crop insurance, and the farm commodity and conservation programs.
For FY2019, both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees reported agriculture bills
(H.R. 5961, S. 2976) in May 2018. The Senate amended and passed its version as Division C of a
four-bill minibus on August 1, 2018 (H.R. 6147). In the absence of a final appropriation,
Congress enacted two continuing resolutions, but these expired on December 21, 2018 (P.L. 115-
245, Division C; and P.L. 115-298). Beginning December 22, 2018, a partial government
shutdown (funding lapse) began limiting operations, since Agriculture appropriations is one of the
seven funding bills not continued. Some “excepted” functions such as food safety and commodity
grading can continue during the funding lapse.
The Trump Administration requested $17 billion for discretionary-funded accounts within the
jurisdiction of Agriculture appropriations, a reduction of $6.2 billion from FY2018 (-27%). Both
the House-reported and Senate-passed bills generally reject most of the proposed reductions.
The discretionary total of the House-reported bill is $23.23 billion, which would be $14 million
less than enacted in FY2018 (-0.1%). The discretionary total of the Senate-passed bill is also
$23.23 billion. However, the Senate bill’s total would be $229 million more than enacted in
FY2018 (+1%) on a comparable basis that excludes the CFTC. The Senate-passed bill would
provide about $250 million more than the House-passed bill on a comparable basis.
Among the primary differences between the bills and from FY2018: Both the House and Senate
bills would increase FDA appropriations (+$308 million in the House bill; +$159 million in the
Senate bill). Both bills increase appropriations for animal and plant health programs (+$16
million to +$19 million). The House bill would provide more base funding for rural water and
waste disposal (+$81 million), but none of the extra that was provided separately in FY2018. The
Senate bill would not change the base funding for rural water but continues $400 million of the
extra funding. For rural broadband, both the House and Senate bills would continue a FY2018
pilot ($550 million in the House bill; $425 million in the Senate bill). The House bill would
increase agricultural research (+$79 million), and the Senate bill would increase Agricultural
Research Service programming (+98 million) but not fund any construction (-$141 million). Both
bills provide less for WIC (-$175 million in the House bill, and -$25 million in the Senate bill),
though the Senate bill has a larger rescission from prior-year WIC funds than does the House bill.
The House bill would reduce base funding for the international Food for Peace program (-$100
million) and does not renew extra funding (-$116 million), while the Senate bill keeps it constant.
The appropriations also carry mandatory spending—largely determined in separate authorizing
laws—that would total $122 billion. Thus, the overall total of the both bills is about $145 billion.
Both bills contain policy provisions affecting disaster programs, rural definitions, industrial
hemp, animal products, nutrition programs, dietary guidelines, CFTC, and tobacco products.
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Contacts
Author Contact Information .......................................................................................................... 29

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Status of FY2019 Agriculture Appropriations
In the absence of a final appropriation, FY2019 began under two continuing resolutions that
lasted until December 21, 2018 (Table 1). Beginning December 22, a partial government
shutdown began limiting operations of agencies that are funded in Agriculture appropriations,
since the FY2019 appropriation has not been enacted. Some “excepted” functions such as food
safety and commodity grading can continue during the funding lapse.
Both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees have reported Agriculture appropriations
bills for FY2019 (H.R. 5961 on May 16, 2018, and S. 2976 on May 24, 2018). The Senate
amended and passed its version as Division C of a four-bill minibus (H.R. 6147 on August 1,
2018). See Figure 1 Appendix B for a more complete picture of the timeline.
Higher discretionary budget caps in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-123) have
facilitated development of the appropriation. The discretionary total of the House-reported bill is
$23.23 billion and would be $14 million less than enacted in FY2018 (-0.1%; Table 2). The
discretionary total of the Senate-passed bill is also $23.23 billion. However, the Senate bill’s total
would be $229 million more than enacted in FY2018 (+1%) on a comparable basis that excludes
the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).1 The Senate-passed bill would provide
about $250 million more than the House-passed bill on a comparable basis.
The appropriations also carry mandatory spending—though that is largely determined in separate
authorizing laws—that would total nearly $122 billion. Thus, the overall total of each of the
proposed bills is about $145 billion.
The Trump Administration released its FY2019 budget request on February 12, 2018,2 along with
the detailed justification from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).3 The Administration
requested $17 billion of discretionary Agriculture appropriations (including CFTC), which would
have been a reduction of $6.2 billion from FY2018 (-27%).
Table 1. Status of FY2019 Agriculture Appropriations
House Action
Senate Action
Continuing
Final
Subcmte.
Cmte.
Floor
Subcmte.
Cmte.
Floor
Resolutions
Appropriation
5/9/2018
5/16/2018
—
5/22/2018
5/24/2018
8/1/2018
P.L. 115-298
—
Drafta
H.R. 5961
Draft
S. 2976
H.R. 6147
until 12/21/18
Voice vote
H.Rept.
Voice vote
S.Rept.
Division C
P.L. 115-245,
115-706
115-259
Vote 92-6
Division C,
until 12/7/2018
Vote 31-20
Vote 31-0
Source: CRS, compiled from the Legislative Information System.
a. The House subcommittee draft is at https://docs.house.gov/meetings/AP/AP01/20180509/108287/BILLS-
115HR-SC-AP-FY2019-Agriculture-SubcommitteeDraft.pdf, and the committee report draft is at
https://docs.house.gov/meetings/AP/AP00/20180516/108312/HRPT-115-HR-FY2019-Agriculture.pdf.

1 Jurisdiction for CFTC appropriations differs between the chambers. Since FY2008, CFTC is marked up in the
Agriculture Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee and in the Financial Services and General
Government Subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee. The enacted CFTC appropriation is carried in the
Agriculture bill in even-numbered fiscal years and in the Financial Services bill in odd-numbered fiscal years.
2 Office of Management and Budget (OMB), FY2019 Budget of the U.S. Government, especially in the Appendix,
https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/appendix.
3 USDA, FY2019 USDA Budget Summary; and USDA, 2019 Explanatory Notes, http://www.obpa.usda.gov.
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Table 2. Agriculture and Related Agencies Appropriations, by Title, FY2018-FY2019
(budget authority in millions of dollars)

FY2018
FY2019
Change FY2018 to
FY2019...
P.L. 115-
Admin.
House
Senate
Title of Agriculture Appropriations Act
141
Request
H.R. 5961
H.R. 6147
Enacted
House
Senate
I. Agricultural Programs: Discretionary
5,622.8
4,752.9
5,704.5
5,587.8
—
+81.7
-35.1
Mandatory
1,344.0
1,374.0
1,374.0
1,374.0
—
+30.0
+30.0
Subtotal
6,966.8
6,126.9
7,078.5
6,961.8
—
+111.7
-5.1
II. Farm Production and Conservation Programs
2,735.6
2,197.9
2,760.3
2,728.0
—
+24.7
-7.6
Mandatory
23,198.3
24,097.5
24,097.5
24,097.5
—
+899.2
+899.2
Subtotal
25,933.9
26,295.4
26,857.8
26,825.5
—
+923.9
+891.6
III. Rural Development
3,000.9a
2,022.5
3,078.5a
3,000.9a
—
+77.6
+0.0
IV. Domestic Food Programs: Discretionary
6,709.8
5,990.1
6,528.5
6,696.1
—
-181.2
-13.7
Mandatory
98,209.6
96,342.3
96,344.8
96,344.8
—
-1,864.9
-1,864.9
Subtotal
104,919.4
102,332.3
102,873.3
103,040.9
—
-2,046.1
-1,878.5
V. Foreign Assistance
2,021.0a
205.0
1,925.8
2,152.3
—
-95.2
+131.4
VI. Related Agencies:

Food and Drug Administration
2,811.9a
3,183.7
3,119.6
2,970.9
—
+307.7
+159.0
Commodity Futures Trading Commission
249.0
281.5
255.0
[281.5]b
—
+6.0 [+32.5]b
VII. General Provisions:

CHIMPS and rescissionsc
-801.0
-1,197.8
-315.0
-395.0
—
+486.0
+406.0
Other appropriations
1,378.1
0.0
579.5
889.5
—
-798.6
-488.6
Scorekeeping adjustmentsd
-481.0
-409.0
-404.0
-404.0
—
+77.0
+77.0
Discretionary: Senate basis w/o CFTC
[22,998.0]
16,745.2
[22,977.8]
23,226.5
—
-20.2
+228.5
Discretionary: House basis w/ CFTC
23,247.0
17,026.7
23,232.8
[23,508.0]b
—
-14.2
+261.0b
Mandatory
122,752.0
121,813.8
121,816.3
121,816.3
—
-935.7
-935.7
Total: Senate basis w/o CFTC
[145,750.0]
138,559.0 [144,794.0]
145,042.8
—
-955.9
-707.2
Total: House basis w/ CFTC
145,999.0
138,840.5
145,049.0 [145,324.3]b
—
-949.9
-674.7b
Source: CRS, using appropriations text and reports and unpublished CBO tables.
Notes: Amounts are nominal discretionary budget authority in mil ions of dol ars unless labeled otherwise.
Excludes amounts in supplemental appropriations acts. Bracketed amounts are not in the official totals due to
differing House-Senate jurisdiction for CFTC.
a. Excludes a portion of the other appropriations that are provided separately in General Provisions.
b. See Division B of H.R. 6147.
c. Changes in Mandatory Program Spending (CHIMPS) are reductions made to mandatory programs via
appropriations. Rescissions are permanent cancellations of previously provided budget authority.
d. “Scorekeeping adjustments” are not necessarily appropriated but are part of the official CBO accounting.
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Agriculture and Related Agencies: FY2019 Appropriations

Figure 1. Timeline of Action on Agriculture Appropriations, FY1999-FY2019

Source: CRS.
Scope of Agriculture Appropriations
The Agriculture appropriations bill—formally known as the Agriculture, Rural Development,
Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act—funds all of USDA,
excluding the U.S. Forest Service. It also funds the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). In even-numbered fiscal years, the act carries
CFTC funding under a practice started in FY2008 for handling House-Senate jurisdictional
differences.
Jurisdiction is with the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations and their respective
Subcommittees on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related
Agencies. The bill includes mandatory and discretionary spending, but the discretionary amounts
are the primary focus during the bill’s development. The scope of the bill is shown in Figure 2.
The federal budget process treats discretionary and mandatory spending differently:4
 Discretionary spending is controlled by annual appropriations acts and receives
most of the attention during the appropriations process. The annual budget

4 See CRS Report R44582, Overview of Funding Mechanisms in the Federal Budget Process, and Selected Examples.
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resolution5 process sets spending limits for discretionary appropriations. Agency
operations (salaries and expenses) and many grant programs are discretionary.
 Mandatory spending6—though carried in the appropriation and usually
advanced unchanged—is controlled by budget rules during the authorization
process.7 Spending for so-called entitlement programs is set in laws such as the
2014 farm bill8 and 2010 child nutrition reauthorizations.9
In the FY2018 Agriculture appropriations, discretionary appropriations were 16% ($23.3 billion)
of the $146 billion total. Mandatory spending carried in the act comprised $123 billion, about
84% of the total. About $99 billion of the $123 billion mandatory amount could be attributed to
programs in the 2014 farm bill (Figure 2). Some programs are not in the authorizing jurisdiction
of the House or Senate Agriculture Committees.
Figure 2. Scope of Agriculture and Related Agencies Appropriations
(FY2018 budget authority in billions of dollars)

Source: CRS. Does not show some agencies under $0.5 bil ion. Includes General Provisions with agencies.
Notes: SNAP = Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; CCC = Commodity Credit Corporation; FCIC =
Federal Crop Insurance Corporation; Section 32 = Funds for Strengthening Markets, Income and Supply; WIC =

5 See CRS Report R42388, The Congressional Appropriations Process: An Introduction.
6 Mandatory spending creates funding stability and consistency compared to annual discretionary appropriations. In
agriculture, it originated with farm commodity programs that had uncertain outlays due to weather and markets.
7 See CRS Report 98-560, Baselines and Scorekeeping in the Federal Budget Process.
8 P.L. 113-79. See CRS In Focus IF10783, Farm Bill Primer: Budget Issues.
9 P.L. 111-296. See CRS Report R44373, Tracking the Next Child Nutrition Reauthorization: An Overview.
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Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children; CSFP = Commodity Supplemental
Food Program; FDA = Food and Drug Administration; FSA = Farm Service Agency; RMA = Risk Management
Agency; FSIS = Food Safety and Inspection Service; APHIS = Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
Within the discretionary total, the largest discretionary spending items are the Special
Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); rural development;
agricultural research; FDA; foreign food aid and trade; farm assistance program salaries and
loans; food safety inspection; conservation; and animal and plant health programs (Figure 2).
The main mandatory spending items are the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP,
and other food and nutrition act programs), child nutrition (school lunch and related programs),
crop insurance, and farm commodity and conservation programs that are paid through USDA’s
Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC). SNAP is referred to as an “appropriated entitlement” and
requires an annual appropriation.10 Amounts for the nutrition program are based on projected
spending needs. In contrast, the CCC operates on a line of credit. The annual appropriation
provides funding to reimburse the Treasury for the use of this line of credit.
Key Budget Terms
Budget authority is the main purpose of an appropriations act or a law authorizing mandatory spending. It
provides the legal basis from which to obligate funds. It expires at the end of a period and is usually available for
one year unless specified otherwise (e.g., two years or indefinite). Most amounts in this report are budget
authority.
Obligations are contractual agreements between an agency and its clients or employees. They occur when an
agency proceeds to spend money from its budget authority. The Antideficiency Act prohibits agencies from
obligating more budget authority than is provided in law, such as during a government shutdown.
Outlays are the payments (cash disbursements) that satisfy a valid obligation. Outlays may differ from budget
authority or obligations because payments from an agency may not occur until services are fulfil ed, goods are
delivered, or construction is completed, even though an obligation occurred.
Program level represents the sum of the activities supported or undertaken by an agency. A program level may
be higher than a budget authority if the program (1) receives user fees that can be used to pay for activities, (2)
makes or guarantees loans that are leveraged on the expectation of repayment (more than $1 of loan authority
for $1 of budget authority), or (3) receives transfers from other agencies.
Rescissions are adjustments that cancel or reduce budget authority after enactment. They score budgetary
savings.
CHIMPS (Changes in Mandatory Program Spending) are adjustments in an appropriations act to mandatory
budget authority. CHIMPS in appropriations usually reduce or limit spending by mandatory programs for one year
and score budgetary savings. They do not change the underlying authority of the program in statute.
For more background, see CRS Report 98-721, Introduction to the Federal Budget Process.
Recent Trends in Agriculture Appropriations
Over time, changes by title of the Agriculture appropriations bill have generally been
proportionate to changes in the bill’s total discretionary limit, though some activities have
sustained relative increases and decreases. Agriculture appropriations peaked in FY2010, declined
through FY2013, and since then have increased (Figure 3). Comparisons to historical
benchmarks, though, may be affected by adjustments for inflation (Figure 4). In FY2018, USDA
reorganization affected the placement of some programs between Titles I and II of the bill.
The stacked bars in Figure 3 represent the discretionary authorization for each appropriations
title. The total of the positive stacked bars is the budget authority in Titles I-VI. Prior to FY2018,
it was higher than the official discretionary spending allocation (the line) because of the

10 See CRS Report RS20129, Entitlements and Appropriated Entitlements in the Federal Budget Process.
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budgetary offset from negative amounts in Title VII (general provisions) and other scorekeeping
adjustments that were negative mostly due to limits on mandatory programs and rescissions.
Figure 3. Discretionary Agriculture Appropriations, by Title, FY2009-FY2019

Source: CRS.
Note: For FY2019, Adm. is the Administration’s request, H.R. is committee-reported H.R. 5961 and Sen. is
Senate-passed H.R. 6147. Includes CFTC in Related Agencies in all years.
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Agriculture and Related Agencies: FY2019 Appropriations

Figure 4. Inflation-Adjusted Agriculture Appropriations, FY2009-FY2019

Source: CRS.
Note: For FY2019, Adm. is the Administration’s request, H.R. is committee-reported H.R. 5961 and Sen. is
Senate-passed H.R. 6147. Includes CFTC in Related Agencies in all years. Budget authority is mil ions of dol ars
adjusted to FY2019 using the gross domestic product price deflator.
Action on FY2019 Appropriations
Administration’s Budget Request
The Trump Administration released its FY2019 budget request on February 12, 2018,11 one week
later than the usual first Monday in February. USDA concurrently released its more detailed
budget summary and justification,12 as did the FDA,13 and the independent agencies of the
CFTC14 and the Farm Credit Administration (FCA).15 The Administration also highlighted some
of the proposed reductions and eliminations separately.16
From these documents, the congressional appropriations committees evaluated the request and
began to consider their own bills in the spring of 2018. For accounts in the jurisdiction of the
Agriculture appropriations bill, the Administration’s budget proposed $17.4 billion, a 25%
reduction from FY2018 (Table 2, Figure 3).

11 OMB, FY2019 Budget of the U.S. Government, Appendix, https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/appendix.
12 USDA, FY2019 USDA Budget Summary; and USDA, 2019 Budget Explanatory Notes, http://www.obpa.usda.gov.
13 FDA, FY2019 FDA Justification of Estimates for Appropriations, https://www.hhs.gov/about/budget/index.html.
14 CFTC, FY2019 CFTC Budget Request, https://www.cftc.gov/sites/default/files/idc/groups/public/documents/file/
cftcbudget2019.pdf.
15 FCA, FY2019 FCA Proposed Budget, https://www.fca.gov/Download/BudgetFY2019.pdf.
16 OMB, FY2019 Budget of the U.S. Government, Major Savings and Reforms.
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The timing of the Administration’s budget request for FY2019 preceded Congress enacting the
final, omnibus FY2018 appropriation in March 2018. Therefore, amounts in the FY2018 column
of the Administration’s budget documents are based on FY2017 and the continuing resolution and
are not reliable indicators of the enacted FY2018 levels that came later.
Discretionary Budget Caps and Subcommittee Allocations
Budget enforcement for appropriations has both procedural and statutory elements.
The procedural elements are associated with the budget resolution and are enforced through
points of order. Typically, each chamber’s full Appropriations Committee receives a top-line
procedural limit on discretionary budget authority, referred to as a “302(a)” allocation, from the
Budget Committee via an annual budget resolution passed by each chamber. The Appropriations
Committees then each in turn subdivide their allocation among their subcommittees, referred to as
the “302(b)” allocations.17
The statutory elements impose limits on discretionary spending in FY2012-FY2021 and are
enforced through discretionary budget caps and sequestration (2 U.S.C. 901(c)).18 The Budget
Control Act of 2011 (BCA, P.L. 112-25) set discretionary budget caps through FY2021 as a way
of reducing federal spending.19 Bipartisan Budget Acts (BBAs) in 2013, 2015, and 2018 (P.L.
113-67, P.L. 114-74, and P.L. 115-123, respectively) have avoided sequestration on discretionary
spending—with the exception of FY2013—by raising those caps (Appendix A).20
In February 2018, the BBA raised the FY2019 cap on nondefense discretionary spending by $68
billion and the cap on defense spending by $85 billion.21 It also provided language to execute (or
“deem”) those higher caps for the appropriations process without following the usual procedures
for an FY2019 budget resolution.22
Under these higher caps and authorities, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees
proceeded to mark up the FY2019 appropriations bills. The Agriculture appropriations bills are
receiving roughly the same subcommittee allocation (“302(b)” allocation) in each chamber that
was used to complete the FY2018 appropriation under the BBA. For FY2019, the subcommittee
allocations for agriculture appropriations are
 House: $23.273 billion (H.Rept. 115-710, May 23, 2018), including the CFTC.
 Senate: $23.235 billion (S.Rept. 115-260, May 24, 2018), excluding the CFTC.
House Action
The House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee marked up its FY2019 bill on May 9, 2018,
by voice vote.23 On May 16, 2018, the full Appropriations Committee passed and reported an
amended bill (H.R. 5961, H.Rept. 115-706) by a vote of 31-20 (Table 1, Figure 1).

17 CRS Report R42388, The Congressional Appropriations Process: An Introduction.
18 CRS Report R42972, Sequestration as a Budget Enforcement Process: Frequently Asked Questions.
19 CRS Report R43411, The Budget Control Act of 2011: Legislative Changes to the Law and Their Budgetary Effects.
20 Looking to the future, though, the budget caps for FY2020 and FY2021 remain unchanged from the original BCA in
2011. They are less than the revised caps for FY2019. Unless the caps change, this implies less future spending.
21 CRS Insight IN10861, Discretionary Spending Levels Under the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018.
22 CRS Report R45157, The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 and an FY2019 Budget Resolution.
23 The House subcommittee draft is at https://docs.house.gov/meetings/AP/AP01/20180509/108287/BILLS-115HR-
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The $23.23 billion discretionary total in the House-reported FY2019 Agriculture appropriation
would be $14 million less than enacted in FY2018 (-0.1%; Table 2, Figure 3). Generally
speaking, the House-reported bill does not include most of the reductions proposed by the
Administration and continues the trend of appropriations from prior years.
Table 3 provides details at the agency level. The primary changes from FY2018 at the agency
level that comprise the relatively flat $14 million overall decrease in the House-reported bill
would do the following:
 Increase base FDA appropriations by $308 million (+11%). However, it does not
continue to separate FDA funding for the opioid crisis that was in the General
Provisions title of the FY2018 appropriation (-$94 million).
 Increase agricultural research (+$79 million, +2.6%) by raising appropriations for
the Agricultural Research Service and National Institute of Agriculture.
 Increase the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) by $16 million
(+1.7%).
 Increase the Rural Utility Service by $82 million (+13%), mostly in the base
funding for rural water and waste disposal programs. However, it does not
continue separate funding for rural water that was in the General Provisions title
last year (-$500 million) or for telemedicine for the opioid crisis (-$20 million). It
reduces separate funding for a broadband pilot program while continuing to fund
some of it through the General Provisions title (-$50 million).
 Decrease discretionary appropriations for domestic nutrition assistance programs
by reducing WIC by $175 million (-2.8%) and the commodity assistance
programs by $15 million (-4.7%). However, the reduction scored in the General
Provisions title by rescinding WIC carryover balances is smaller in FY2019,
retaining more budget authority (+$500 million).
 Decrease the base funding in international food assistance Food for Peace grants
by $100 million (-6.2%) and not continue the extra funding that was in the
General Provisions title of the FY2018 appropriations (-$116 million).
In addition to discretionary spending, the appropriations also carry funding for mandatory
spending—largely determined in separate authorizing laws—that would total $121.82 billion,
about $936 million less than in FY2018 because of automatic changes in economic conditions
and entitlement enrollment rather than any change from congressional action. Thus, the overall
total of the House-reported bill is about $145 billion.
Senate Action
The Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee marked up a FY2019 bill on May 22, 2018,
by voice vote. On May 24, 2018, the Appropriations Committee passed and reported an amended
bill (S. 2976, S.Rept. 115-259) by a vote of 31-0. On August 1, 2018, the Senate passed a four-bill
minibus (H.R. 6147) by a vote of 92-6, with agriculture as Division C (Table 1, Figure 1).
The discretionary total of the Senate-passed bill is also $23.23 billion. However, the Senate bill’s
total would be $229 million more than enacted in FY2018 (+1%) on a comparable basis that
excludes the CFTC, since the latter was part of the enacted FY2018 appropriation. The Senate-

SC-AP-FY2019-Agriculture-SubcommitteeDraft.pdf, and the draft of the committee report is at https://docs.house.gov/
meetings/AP/AP00/20180516/108312/HRPT-115-HR-FY2019-Agriculture.pdf.
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passed bill would provide about $250 million more than the House-reported bill would on a
comparable basis computed by subtracting CFTC from the House bill.
Table 3 provides details at the agency level. The primary changes from FY2018 at the agency
level that comprise the Senate-passed bill’s overall $228 million increase are the following:
 Increase base FDA appropriations by $159 million (+6%). Like the House bill, it
does not continue separate FDA funding for the opioid crisis that was in the
General Provisions title of the FY2018 appropriation (-$94 million).
 Increase APHIS by $19 million (+1.9%), slightly more than the House bill.
 Decrease discretionary appropriations for domestic nutrition assistance programs
by reducing WIC by $25 million (-0.4%). This is a smaller reduction than in the
House bill. In the rescissions in the General Provisions title, the reduction is
smaller than was rescinded in FY2019 (+$400 million). Nonetheless, the Senate
bill’s rescission is greater than in the House bill.
 Increase international nutrition assistance by raising the base funding for Food
for Peace grants by $116 million (+7.2%). The extra funding that was in the
General Provisions title of the FY2018 appropriations is not continued (-$116
million).
 Decrease the four agricultural research agencies by $44 million (-1.4%), mostly
by providing no funding for ARS building and facilities (-$141 million), while
increasing ARS salaries and expenses (+$98 million).
 Decrease the extra funding for rural development compared to the amount
provided in the FY2018 General Provisions (-$100 million for rural water, -$175
million for broadband). Base funding for rural development is unchanged overall.
The Senate-passed bill’s mandatory spending is virtually identical to that of the House-reported
bill ($121.82 billion). Its overall total of discretionary and mandatory appropriations is $145
billion.
Continuing Resolutions
In the absence of a final FY2019 Agriculture appropriation, Congress enacted two continuing
resolutions (CRs) to continue government operations through December 21, 2018 (P.L. 115-245,
Division C, from 10/1/2018 through 12/7/2018, and P.L. 115-298 through 12/21/2018).24 When
the last CR expired without further enacted budget authority, a partial government shutdown
began on December 22. Some “excepted” functions such as food safety and commodity grading
can continue during the funding lapse, as explained in “Government Shutdown.”
In general, a CR continues the funding rates and conditions that were in the previous year’s
appropriation.25 The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) may prorate funding to the
agencies on an annualized basis for the duration of the CR through a process known as
apportionment.26 For the 81 days (22%) of FY2019 through December 21, 2018, the CRs:

24 CRS Report R42647, Continuing Resolutions: Overview of Components and Recent Practices.
25 CRS Report RL34700, Interim Continuing Resolutions (CRs): Potential Impacts on Agency Operations.
26 For example, if a CR lasts for three months, then 3/12 of the previous fiscal year amount may be apportioned to limit
agency spending. See OMB, “Apportionment of the Continuing Resolution(s) for Fiscal Year 2019,” September 28,
2018, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/bulletin_no_18_05.pdf.
Congressional Research Service
R45230 · VERSION 12 · UPDATED
10

Agriculture and Related Agencies: FY2019 Appropriations

 continued the terms of the FY2018 Agriculture appropriations act (Section 101)
and exclude the FY2018 change in mandatory program spending (CHIMP) on
the Biomass Crop Assistance Program, which is not authorized for FY2019; and
 provided sufficient funding to maintain mandatory program levels, including for
nutrition programs (Section 110)—this is standard language for recent years’ CRs
but is additionally important for SNAP, because some authorizations in the 2014
farm bill began expiring after FY2018.27
CRs may adjust prior-year amounts through anomalies or make specific administrative changes.
Five anomalies specifically applied to the agriculture appropriation during both CRs:
1. Child Nutrition Programs: apportionment for a summer foods program
sufficient to allow it to be operational by May 2019 (Section 114).
2. Rural Utilities Service: allows a loan authorization level for the Rural Water and
Waste Disposal program of $4.141 billion (Section 115).
3. Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC): allows CCC to receive its transfer
about a month earlier than usual, prior to a final report and audit. Many farm bill
payments to farmers are due in October 2018 in addition to USDA’s plan to
make supplemental payments under a trade assistance program.28 Without the
anomaly, CCC might exhaust its $30 billion line of credit (Section 116).
4. Agricultural Research Service: an additional $42 million for operations and
maintenance at the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) being built
in Manhattan, Kansas, and being transferred to USDA from the Department of
Homeland Security (Section 117).
5. Department of Homeland Security (DHS): DHS may transfer up to $15
million to USDA to support NBAF operations (Section 125).
Government Shutdown
When an appropriation (or CR) expires and no further budget authority has been provided, a
funding gap exists and may cause operations to cease at affected agencies. In general, the
Antideficiency Act (31 U.S.C. 1341 et seq.) prohibits federal agencies from obligating funds
before an appropriations measure has been enacted. Exceptions may allow for certain activities to
continue, such as for law enforcement, protection of human life or property, and activities funded
by other means such as carryover funds or user fees. Programs that are funded by other
authorities—such as entitlements or the mandatory programs in the farm bill—may also be
affected if the program is executed using personnel whose salaries are funded by discretionary
appropriations that are affected by the funding gap.29
For FY2019, a funding gap began on December 22, 2018, for agencies within the jurisdiction of
seven of the 12 appropriations bills, including the Agriculture appropriations bill. The last time
that the government experienced a multi-week shutdown was in October 2013. Prior to that, the

27 CRS In Focus IF10989, Expiration of the 2014 Farm Bill: Some Potential Implications.
28 CRS Report R45310, Farm Policy: USDA’s Trade Aid Package.
29 CRS Report RL34680, Shutdown of the Federal Government: Causes, Processes, and Effects.
Congressional Research Service
R45230 · VERSION 12 · UPDATED
11

Agriculture and Related Agencies: FY2019 Appropriations

next previous multi-day shutdown was in FY1996, though Agriculture appropriations were not
affected then because a stand-alone full-year Agriculture appropriation had been enacted.30
In general, a shutdown implies the furlough of certain personnel and curtailment of affected
agency activities and services. Agencies make their own determinations about activities and
personnel that are “excepted” from furlough and publish their intentions in “contingency plans”
that are supervised by OMB.31 For agencies in the Agriculture appropriations jurisdiction,
shutdown or contingency plans were published for USDA,32 FDA,33 and the CFTC.34
USDA initially estimated on December 23 that 56% of its employees were excepted from
furlough in the agencies that are funded by Agriculture appropriations (all of USDA except the
Forest Service), which amounts to 35,004 staff being excepted out of 62,288.35 The number of
personnel varies by agency, and it may change as a shutdown continues as funding availability
changes and as new circumstances arise.
For example, nearly 90% of the FSIS and AMS staff (8,434 and 3,944 staff, respectively) were
initially retained to continue food safety inspections of meat and poultry at processing plants and
to continue commodity grading and inspection services for commerce. About 60% of the APHIS
was excepted (4,769 staff) to continue preclearance inspection for transportation between Hawaii
and Puerto Rico and the mainland and to carry out quarantine and certification for imports and
exports. Resources in research laboratories and facilities that could be damaged by inattention
was protected by excepting 18% (1,116 staff) of ARS. All of NRCS was initially excepted by
using mandatory funding (9,342 staff).36 The Farm Service Agency initially excepted 6,427 staff
(61% out of 10,479) through December 28 but then closed county offices, thereby lowering the
number of excepted employees.37
While a number of selected USDA functions continue under the shutdown, many others have
ceased operations. Examples of USDA functions that are not being performed by furloughed
employees include data collection and analysis that inform the commodity markets, development
of regulations to implement the new farm bill that was enacted in December 2018, completing the
Administration’s “trade aid” payments, processing and funding farm loans and guarantees, rural
development loan and grant programs (rural housing, community facilities and rural water, rural
business and broadband), agricultural research programs and grants, and many international
assistance programs. The duration of the shutdown could expand the number of USDA activities
affected.

30 CRS Report RS20348, Federal Funding Gaps: A Brief Overview.
31 OMB, “Agency Contingency Plans,” https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/information-for-agencies/agency-
contingency-plans.
32 USDA, “U.S. Department of Agriculture Lapse in Funding Plans,” various agency-level documents, December 2018,
https://www.usda.gov/shutdownplans.
33 HHS, “FY2019 HHS Contingency Staffing Plan for Operations in the Absence of Enacted Annual Agriculture and
Interior Appropriations,” https://www.hhs.gov/about/budget/fy-2019-hhs-contingency-staffing-plan/index.html.
34 CFTC, “CFTC Plan for Lapse in Appropriations,” December 18, 2018, https://www.cftc.gov/sites/default/files/2018-
12/CFTCPlanLapseAppropriations121818.pdf.
35 CRS analysis of USDA in “Summary of Activities to be Continued in the Event of a Government Shutdown,”
December 23, 2018, https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/usda-shutdown-plan-summary-2.pdf.
36 USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, “NRCS Is Open for Business,” https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/
portal/nrcs/detail/national/home/?cid=NRCSEPRD1434827 (accessed January 2, 2019).
37 Farm Service Agency, “Government Shutdown Information,” https://www.fsa.usda.gov/help/shutdowninfo, accessed
January 2, 2019.
Congressional Research Service
R45230 · VERSION 12 · UPDATED
12

Agriculture and Related Agencies: FY2019 Appropriations

FDA initially retained 59% of its employees in duty status (10,344 staff out of 17,397) based on a
combination of factors including carryover funding, the need to safeguard human life, and the
protection of property.38 CFTC excepted 9% of its employees (61 staff out of 673) to address risks
that could pose a threat to the functioning of the stock market and commodity markets and that
could affect the safety of human life or the protection of property.39

38 HHS, “FY2019 Contingency Staffing Plan,” December 21, 2018, https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/fy-2019-
hhs-lapse-contingency-plan-narrative-december-ag-interior.pdf.
39 CFTC, “CFTC Plan for Lapse in Appropriations.”
Congressional Research Service
R45230 · VERSION 12 · UPDATED
13

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Table 3. Agriculture and Related Agencies Appropriations, by Agency, FY2016-FY2019
(budget authority in millions of dollars)
FY2016
FY2017
FY2018
FY2019
Change FY18 to FY19

P.L. 114-
P.L. 115-
P.L. 115-
Admin.
House
Senate
Agency or Major Program
113
31
141
Request
H.R. 5961
H.R. 6147
Enacted
House
Senate
Title I. Agricultural Programs

Departmental Administration
373.2
403.9
396.0
369.8
387.8
389.5
—
-8.1
-6.5
Research, Education and Economics

Agricultural Research Service
1,355.9
1,269.8
1,343.4
1,019.0
1,395.9
1,301.0
—
+52.6
-42.4
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
1,326.5
1,362.9
1,407.8
1,257.7
1,452.6
1,423.2
—
+44.8
+15.4
National Agricultural Statistics Service
168.4
171.2
191.7
165.0
173.7
174.8
—
-18.0
-17.0
Economic Research Service
85.4
86.8
86.8
45.0
86.8
86.8
—
+0.0
+0.0
Under Secretary
0.9
0.9
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.8
—
+0.0
+0.0
Marketing and Regulatory Programs

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
897.6
949.4
985.1
742.0
1,001.5
1,003.7
—
+16.5
+18.6
Agricultural Marketing Servicea
82.5
86.2
152.8
119.7
154.3
157.1
—
+1.5
+4.3
Section 32 (M)
1,303.0
1,322.0
1,344.0
1,374.0
1,374.0
1,374.0
—
+30.0
+30.0
Grain Inspection, Packers, Stockyards Admin.a
43.1
43.5 moved into Agricultural Marketing Servicea
Under Secretary
0.9
0.9
0.9
0.8
0.9
0.9
—
+0.0
+0.0
Food Safety

Food Safety and Inspection Service
1,014.9
1,032.1
1,056.8
1,032.3
1,049.3
1,049.3
—
-7.5
-7.5
Under Secretary
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.8
—
+0.0
+0.0
Farm and Commodity Programsa

Farm Service Agencyb
1,595.1
1,624.0 moved to Title II: Farm Production and Conservationa
FSA Farm Loans: Loan Authorityc
6,402.1
8,002.6 moved to Title II: Farm Production and Conservationa
CRS-14

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FY2016
FY2017
FY2018
FY2019
Change FY18 to FY19

P.L. 114-
P.L. 115-
P.L. 115-
Admin.
House
Senate
Agency or Major Program
113
31
141
Request
H.R. 5961
H.R. 6147
Enacted
House
Senate
Risk Management Agency Salaries and Exp.
74.8
74.8 moved to Title II: Farm Production and Conservationa
Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (M)
7,858.0
8,667.0 moved to Title II: Farm Production and Conservationa
Commodity Credit Corporation (M)
6,871.1
21,290.7 moved to Title II: Farm Production and Conservationa
Under Secretary
0.9
0.9 moved to Title II: Farm Production and Conservationa
Subtotal

Discretionary
7,020.3
7,107.7
5,622.8
4,752.9
5,704.5
5,593.8
—
+81.7
-29.1
Mandatory (M)
16,032.6
31,280.2
1,344.0
1,374.0
1,374.0
1,374.0
—
+30.0
+30.0
Subtotal
23,052.9
38,387.9
6,966.8
6,126.9
7,078.5
6,967.8
—
+111.7
+0.9
Title II. Farm Production and Conservationa

Business Center
—
—
1.0
196.4
115.4
1.0
—
+114.4
+0.0
Farm Service Agencyb
moved from Title Ia
1,625.2
1,294.2
1,518.8
1,622.7
—
-106.4
-2.6
FSA Farm Loans: Loan Authorityc
moved from Title Ia
8,005.6
7,617.7
7,987.7
8,017.7
—
-17.9
+12.1
Risk Management Agency Salaries and Exp.
moved from Title Ia
74.8
37.9
75.4
74.8
—
+0.6
+0.0
Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (M)
moved from Title Ia
8,913.0
8,687.0
8,687.0
8,687.0
—
-226.0
-226.0
Commodity Credit Corporation (M)
moved from Title Ia
14,284.8
15,410.0
15,410.0
15,410.0
—
+1,125.2
+1,125.2
Conservation Operations
850.9
864.5
874.1
669.0
890.3
879.1
—
+16.2
+5.0
Watershed and Flood Prevention
—
150.0
150.0
—
150.0
150.0
—
+0.0
+0.0
Watershed Rehabilitation Program
12.0
12.0
10.0
—
10.0
—
—
+0.0
-10.0
Under Secretary
0.9
0.9
0.9
0.9
0.9
0.9
—
+0.0
+0.0
Subtotal

Discretionary
863.8
1,027.4
2,735.6
2,197.9
2,760.3
2,728.0
—
+24.7
-7.6
Mandatory (M)
moved from Title I Ia
23,198.3
24,097.5
24,097.5
24,097.5
—
+899.2
+899.2
Subtotal
moved from Title I Ia
25,933.9
26,295.4
26,857.8
26,825.5
—
+923.9
+891.6
CRS-15

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FY2016
FY2017
FY2018
FY2019
Change FY18 to FY19

P.L. 114-
P.L. 115-
P.L. 115-
Admin.
House
Senate
Agency or Major Program
113
31
141
Request
H.R. 5961
H.R. 6147
Enacted
House
Senate
Title III. Rural Development

Salaries and Expenses (including transfers)d
682.9
675.8
680.8
585.9
686.8
682.8
—
+6.0
+2.0
Rural Housing Service
1,616.4
1,654.9
1,582.4
1,351.4
1,582.5
1,585.2
—
+0.2
+2.8
RHS Loan Authorityc
27,496.8
28,083.4
28,390.1
27,760.0
28,345.5
28,590.1
—
-44.6
+200.0
Rural Business-Cooperative Servicee
90.5
97.7
109.5
0.0
99.5
104.2
—
-10.0
-5.4
RBCS Loan Authorityc
979.3
988.4
991.2
0.0
1,027.5
991.2
—
+36.3
+0.0
Rural Utilities Service
559.3
639.9
628.1f
85.2
709.6f
628.7f
—
+81.5
+0.6
RUS Loan Authorityc
8,210.6
8,217.0
8,219.9
7,413.1
8,419.9
8,219.9
—
+200.0
+0.0
Under Secretary
0.9
0.9 moved to Departmental Administration as an Assistant to the Secretarya
Subtotal, Discretionary
2,950.0
3,069.2
3,000.9f
2,022.5
3,078.5f
3,000.9f
—
+77.6
+0.0
Subtotal, RD Loan Authorityc
36,686.7
37,288.9
37,601.2
35,173.1
37,792.9
37,801.2
—
+191.6
+200.0
Title IV. Domestic Food Programs

Child Nutrition Programs (M)
22,149.7
22,794.0
24,254.1
23,146.9
23,183.5
23,184.0
—
-1,070.6
-1,070.1
WIC Program
6,350.0
6,350.0
6,175.0
5,750.0
6,000.0
6,150.0
—
-175.0
-25.0
SNAP, Food and Nutrition Act Programs (M)
80,849.4
78,480.7
74,013.5
73,218.3
73,219.3
73,219.3
—
-794.2
-794.2
Commodity Assistance Programs
296.2
315.1
322.1
55.5
306.9
322.1
—
-15.2
+0.0
Nutrition Programs Administration
150.8
170.7
153.8
160.8
162.8
164.7
—
+9.0
+10.8
Under Secretary
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.8
—
+0.0
+0.0
Subtotal

Discretionary
6,838.9
6,884.7
6,709.8
5,990.1
6,528.5
6,696.1
—
-181.2
-13.7
Mandatory (M)
102,958.1
101,226.7
98,209.6
96,342.3
96,344.8
96,344.8
—
-1,864.9
-1,864.9
Subtotal
109,797.0
108,111.3
104,919.4
102,332.3
102,873.3
103,040.9
—
-2,046.1
-1,878.5
CRS-16

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FY2016
FY2017
FY2018
FY2019
Change FY18 to FY19

P.L. 114-
P.L. 115-
P.L. 115-
Admin.
House
Senate
Agency or Major Program
113
31
141
Request
H.R. 5961
H.R. 6147
Enacted
House
Senate
Title V. Foreign Assistance

Foreign Agricultural Service
191.6
196.6
199.7
193.1
204.1
212.2
—
+4.5
+12.6
Food for Peace Title II, and admin. expenses
1,468.5f
1,466.1f
1,600.1f
0.1
1,500.1
1,716.1
—
-100.0
+116.0
McGovern-Dole Food for Education
201.6
201.6
207.6
0.0
207.6
210.3
—
+0.0
+2.6
CCC Export Loan Salaries
6.7
8.5
8.8
7.1
9.2
8.8
—
+0.3
+0.0
Office of Codex Alimentarius
—
—
3.8
3.8
3.8
4.0
—
+0.0
+0.2
Under Secretary
—
—
0.9
0.9
0.9
0.9
—
+0.0
+0.0
Subtotal
1,868.5
1,872.9
2,021.0
205.0
1,925.8
2,152.3
—
-95.2
+131.4
Title VI. Related Agencies

Food and Drug Administration
2,729.6
2,771.2
2,811.9
3,183.7
3,119.6
2,970.9
—
+307.7
+159.0
Commodity Futures Trading Commissiong
250.0
[250.0]
249.0
281.5
255.0
[281.5]h
—
+6.0
[+32.5]h
Subtotal
2,979.6
[3,021.2]
3,060.9
3,465.2
3,374.6
[3,252.4]h
—
+313.7
[+191.5]h
Title VII. General Provisions

Reductions in Mandatory Programsi

a. Environmental Quality Incentives Program
-209.0
-179.0
—
-136.3
—
—
—
+0.0
+0.0
b. Watershed Rehabilitation Program
-68.0
-54.0
—
-46.2
—
—
—
+0.0
+0.0
c. Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program
-125.0
-125.0
—
-125.0
—
—
—
+0.0
+0.0
d. Biorefinery Assistance Program
-19.0
-20.0
—
—
—
—
—
+0.0
+0.0
e. Biomass Crop Assistance Program
-20.0
-20.0
-21.0
—
—
—
—
+21.0
+21.0
f. Cushion of Credit (Rural Development)
-179.0
-132.0
—
-225.0
-50.0
—
—
-50.0
+0.0
g. Section 32
-216.0
-231.0
—
-342.0
—
—
—
+0.0
+0.0
h. Other CHIMPS and mandatory rescissions
+5.0
+17.0
+20.0
-36.4
+35.0
+5.0
—
+15.0
-15.0
CRS-17

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FY2016
FY2017
FY2018
FY2019
Change FY18 to FY19

P.L. 114-
P.L. 115-
P.L. 115-
Admin.
House
Senate
Agency or Major Program
113
31
141
Request
H.R. 5961
H.R. 6147
Enacted
House
Senate
Subtotal, CHIMPS
-831.0
-744.0
-1.0
-910.8
-15.0
+5.0
—
-14.0
+6.0
Rescissions (discretionary)
-34.0
-854.0
-800.0
-287.0
-300.0
-400.0
—
+500.0
+400.0
Other appropriations

a. Disaster/emergency programs
273.0
234.8j
—
—
—
—
—
+0.0
+0.0
b. Water and Waste Water
—
—
+500.0
—
—
+400.0
—
-500.0
-100.0
c. Broadband pilot
—
—
+600.0
—
+550.0
+425.0
—
-50.0
-175.0
d. Opioid Enforcement and Surveil ance
—
—
+94.0
—
—
—
—
-94.0
-94.0
e. Food for Peace
250.0
134.0
+116.0
—
—
—
—
-116.0
-116.0
f. Other appropriations
33.1
103.4
68.1
—
+29.5
+64.5
—
-38.6
-3.6
Subtotal, Other appropriations
556.1
472.2
1,378.1
—
579.5
889.5
—
-798.6
-488.6
Total, General Provisions
-308.9
-1,125.8
577.1
-1,197.8
264.5
494.5
—
-312.6
-82.6
Scorekeeping Adjustmentsk

Disaster declaration in this bil
-130.0
-206.1j
—
—
—
—
—
+0.0
+0.0
Other scorekeeping adjustments
-332.0
-524.0
-481.0
-409.0
-404.0
-404.0
—
+77.0
+77.0
Subtotal, Scorekeeping adjustments
-462.0
-730.1
-481.0
-409.0
-404.0
-404.0
—
+77.0
+77.0
Totals

Discretionary: Senate basis w/o CFTC
[21,500.0]
20,877.0
[22,998.0]
16,745.2
[22,977.8]
23,226.5
—
-20.2
+228.5
Discretionary: House basis w/ CFTC
21,750.0
[21,127.0]
23,247.0
17,026.7
23,232.8 [23,508.0]h
—
-14.2
[+261.0]h
Mandatory (M)
118,990.7
132,506.9
122,752.0
121,813.8
121,816.3
121,816.3
—
-935.7
-935.7
Total: Senate basis w/o CFTC
[140,490.7]
153,383.9 [145,750.0]
138,559.0 [144,794.0]
145,042.8
—
-955.9
-707.2
Total: House basis w/ CFTC
140,740.7 [153,633.9]
145,999.0
138,840.5
145,049.0
[145,324]h
—
-949.9
-674.7h
Source: CRS, using appropriations text and report tables, and unpublished CBO tables.
CRS-18

Notes: Amounts are nominal discretionary budget authority in mil ions of dol ars unless labeled otherwise. (M) indicates that the account is mandatory authority (or
primarily mandatory authority). Excludes amounts in supplemental appropriations acts. Bracketed amounts are not in the official totals due to differing House-Senate
jurisdiction for CFTC but are shown for comparison.
a. Row headings reflect recent USDA reorganization. The Farm Service Agency and Risk Management Agency were moved from Title I to Title II, as was the
Commodity Credit Corporation and Federal Crop Insurance Corporation in mandatory spending. Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration was
moved into the Agricultural Marketing Service.
b. Includes regular FSA salaries and expenses, plus transfers for farm loan program salaries and administrative expenses. Also includes farm loan program loan subsidy,
State Mediation Grants, Dairy Indemnity Program (mandatory funding), and Grassroots Source Water Protection Program. Does not include appropriations to the
Foreign Agricultural Service for export loans and P.L. 480 administration that are transferred to FSA.
c. Loan authority is the amount of loans that can be made or guaranteed with a loan subsidy. This amount is not added in the budget authority subtotals or totals.
d. Includes Rural Development salaries and expenses and transfers from the three rural development agencies for salaries and expenses. Amounts for the agencies thus
reflect program funds for loans and grants.
e. Amounts for the Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBCS) are before the rescission in the Cushion of Credit account, unlike in Appropriations Committee tables.
The rescission is included with the CHIMPS as classified by CBO, which allows the RBCS subtotal to remain positive.
f.
Excludes a portion of the other appropriations that are provided separately in General Provisions.
g. Jurisdiction for CFTC is in the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee and the Senate Financial Services Appropriations Subcommittee. After FY2008,
CFTC is carried in enacted Agriculture appropriations in even-numbered fiscal years in House Agriculture markup but not in Senate Agriculture markup. Bracketed
amounts are not in the official totals due to differing House-Senate jurisdiction for CFTC but are shown for comparison.
h. See Division B of H.R. 6147.
i.
Includes reductions (limitations and rescissions) to mandatory programs that may also be known as Changes in Mandatory Program Spending (CHIMPS).
j.
Includes $206 mil ion appropriated for the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) and Emergency Watershed Program (EWP) in the FY2017 second CR (P.L. 114-
254, §185) that were offset as emergency spending. Another $29 mil ion for ECP was included in the final appropriation (§753).
k. “Scorekeeping adjustments” are not necessarily appropriated items and may not be shown in appropriations committee tables but are part of the official CBO score
(accounting) of the bil . They predominantly include “negative subsidies” in loan program accounts and adjustments for disaster designations in the bil .
CRS-19

link to page 24 Agriculture and Related Agencies: FY2019 Appropriations

Policy-Related Provisions
In addition to setting budgetary amounts, the Agriculture appropriations bill has also been a
vehicle for policy-related provisions that direct how the executive branch should carry out the
appropriation. These provisions may have the force of law if they are included in the text of the
appropriation, usually in the General Provisions, but their effect is generally limited to the current
fiscal year. Sometimes, the provisions amend the U.S. Code and have long-standing effects.
The explanatory statement that accompanies the final appropriation, and the House and Senate
report language that accompanies the committee-reported bills, may also provide policy
instructions. These documents do not have the force of law but often explain congressional intent,
which the agencies are expected to follow.
Table 4 compares some of the major policy provisions that have been identified in the General
Provisions (Title VII) of the FY2019 Agriculture appropriations bills. Many of these provisions
have been included in past years’ appropriations laws.
Table 4. Selected Policy Provisions in FY2019 Agriculture Appropriations
House-reported H.R. 5961
Senate-passed H.R. 6147, Division C
Disaster payments. In general, prohibits the use of
Similar to House provision. (§715)
Section 32, clause (3), to reestablish farmers’ purchasing
power by making payments to farmers. However, allows
an exception to use up to $350 mil ion of carryover for
this purpose. (§715)
Rural definition. Defines rural for the water and waste
Similar to House provisions. (§§728, 744)
disposal guaranteed loan program as a city, town, or
unincorporated area with no more than 20,000 people.
(§728) Directs that eligibility for rural development
programs shall not include incarcerated prison
populations. (§744)
Persistent poverty counties. Requires that at least
No comparable provision.
10% of the funds in certain rural development programs
shall be allocated to persistent poverty counties, defined
as any county that has had 20% or more of its population
living in poverty over the past 30 years. (§750)
Income verification. Provides USDA access to Social
Similar to House provision. (§748)
Security and Internal Revenue Service data to verify the
income of individuals participating in certain rural housing
programs. (§747)
American steel. Prohibits funding for the rural water,
Similar to House provision. (§742)
wastewater, waste disposal, and solid waste management
projects unless all of the iron and steel products are
produced in the United States. (§743)
No comparable provision.
Agriculture risk coverage (ARC) pilot. Directs
USDA to conduct a pilot program to make payments for
the ARC program that addresses disparities in the
calculation of yields among counties. (§747)
No comparable provision.
Industrial hemp. Prohibits funding in contravention of
the 2014 farm bil provision for research on industrial
hemp or the transportation, processing, sale, or use of
industrial hemp or seeds that are grown in accordance
with the farm bil provision. (§729)
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House-reported H.R. 5961
Senate-passed H.R. 6147, Division C
No comparable provision.
National Bio- and Agro-defense Facility (NBAF).
Authorizes ARS and APHIS to appoint up to 50
employees annually in FY2019-2025 for NBAF at a rate of
pay that exceeds the General Schedule. (§738)
No comparable provision.
Horse slaughter. Prohibits USDA from conducting
horse slaughter inspection. (§758)
Animal Welfare Act. Prohibits funding to issue or
No comparable provision.
renew licenses to class B dealers who sell dogs and cats
for use in research, experiments, teaching, or testing.
(§741)
Lab-grown meat. Directs USDA to regulate products
No comparable provision.
that are made from cells of amenable species of livestock
that are grown under control ed conditions for human
food to prevent adulteration and misbranding. Applies to
FY2018 and thereafter. (§736)
Poultry from China. Prohibits funds to buy raw or
No comparable provisions.
processed poultry products from China for the National
School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Child
and Adult Care Food Program, and Summer Food Service
Program. (§748) Prohibits funding to finalize the
proposed rule, “Eligibility of the People’s Republic of
China to Export to the United States Poultry Products,”
until USDA verifies certain conditions. (§751)
School meal prices. Exempts certain school food
No comparable provision.
authorities (those without a negative balance in their
school food service accounts as of December 31, 2018)
from paid meal equity requirements in school year 2019-
2020. (§757)
Vegetables in school breakfast. Prohibits funding to
No comparable provision.
implement or enforce the portion of a School Breakfast
Program regulation that limits substituting fruits with
certain vegetables. (§767)
SNAP retailer standards. Prohibits funding to
Similar to House provision. (§728)
administer the “variety requirements” in the final rule
“Enhancing Retailer Standards in SNAP” until the
Secretary amends the definition of variety to increase the
number of items that qualify as acceptable varieties in
each staple food category. (§727)
SNAP disclosure. Exempts from Freedom of
No comparable provision.
Information Act disclosure SNAP transaction data that
contain information specific to a store, store location,
person, or other entity. (§768)
Human embryos. Prohibits FDA from using funds to
Similar to House provision. (§733)
accept any investigational new drug application for
“research in which a human embryo is intentionally
created or modified to include a heritable genetic
modification.” (§732)
Partially hydrogenated oils. Directs FDA that no food Similar to House provision. (§736)
containing partially hydrogenated oils shall be considered
to be adulterated on that basis so long as it enters
interstate commerce before June 18, 2018. (§740)
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House-reported H.R. 5961
Senate-passed H.R. 6147, Division C
Sodium. Prevents FDA from developing regulations or
Similar to House provision. (§750)
issuing final guidance for population-wide sodium
reduction actions until a dietary reference intake report is
completed. (§752)
Grapes for wine. Prohibits FDA funds to enforce the
Similar to House provision. (§753)
final rule “Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing,
and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption” with
respect to grape varietals used solely for wine. (§755)
Dietary guidelines. Directs USDA to submit a report
No comparable provision.
to Congress within 180 days about the process used to
establish the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for
Americans, including the recommendations from the
National Academies of Science report, “Redesigning the
Process for Establishing the Dietary Guidelines for
Americans.” (§763)
Added sugars. Prohibits funds to administer the final
Similar to House provision. (§768)
rule “Food Labeling: Revision of the Nutrition and
Supplement Facts Labels” to the extent that it requires
added sugars labeling for single-ingredient foods to which
sugars or sweeteners are not added (e.g., honey or maple
syrup). (§764)
Genetically engineered salmon. Directs that
Prohibits FDA from allowing genetically engineered
disclosure requirements for genetically engineered
salmon into interstate commerce until it publishes final
salmon or finfish fol ow the National Bioengineered Food
labeling guidelines. (§740)
Disclosure Standard and subsequent USDA regulations.
(§766)
CFTC statutes. Amends the Commodity Exchange Act
No comparable provision.
to address the initial margin requirements for certain
swap transactions. (§738) Further amends the act by
directing CFTC to consider cost-benefit analysis in its
regulations (using language from a House-passed bil , H.R.
238). (§760)
Cigar regulation. Prohibits funds to administer the
No comparable provision.
FDA final “deeming rule” from May 10, 2016, with
respect to traditional large and premium cigars. (§769)
Prohibits funds to regulate cigars and pipe tobacco
differently than April 25, 2014, the date that such tobacco
products were proposed to be deemed subject to certain
requirements. (§770)
Tobacco products. Amends the Federal Food, Drug,
No comparable provision.
and Cosmetic Act concerning the registration of
substantially equivalent tobacco products. (§771)
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House-reported H.R. 5961
Senate-passed H.R. 6147, Division C
Vapor products. Directs the Secretary of Health and
No comparable provision.
Human Services to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking,
within 21 months, establishing a product standard for
vapor products and to promulgate a final rule within 36
months. (§772) Deems a vapor product to be
misbranded if it is advertised in a nonadult publication,
specifies terms for distributing vapor products in other
than direct face-to-face sales, directs the Secretary of
Health and Human Services to promulgate regulations
requiring labeling of vapor products, and imposes
registration requirements on vapor product retailers.
(§773) Amends the Pro-Children Act of 1994 to extend
the prohibition on smoking in certain facilities that
provide children’s services to vapor products. (§774)
Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to
add age verification requirements for remote sales of
vapor products. (§775) Directs the Secretary of Health
and Human Services to submit a report to Congress
within 180 days about the Youth Vapor Product
Education, Prevention, and Enforcement Program. (§776)
Electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS).
No comparable provision.
Directs the FDA commissioner to conduct a study and
submit a report to Congress within 180 days on
preventing the use of ENDS by youth. (§777)
No comparable provision.
Prevents certain changes from occurring under
implementation of the Grain Standards Act. (§759)
No comparable provision.
Provides for technical assistance to respond to volcanic
eruptions. (§760)
No comparable provision.
Directs USDA and the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration to establish a working group
and issue a report on ocean farming practices and ways
to deacidify oceans. (§761)
No comparable provision.
Directs USDA to submit a report to Congress describing
how conservation programs may be used to conserve
ocelots (wild cats native to the southwestern United
States). (§762)
No comparable provision.
Directs the Rural Housing Service to submit a report to
Congress about the housing affected by Title V of the
Housing Act of 1949, its loan status, and its affordability.
(§763)
No comparable provision.
Directs the FDA to revise the advice in a notice about
eating fish, to be consistent with nutrition science
recognized by FDA about seafood consumption. (§764)
No comparable provision.
Amends implementation of a broadband program in the
2018 Agriculture Appropriation regarding eligibility
determination and expansion efforts. (§765)
Source: CRS.
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Appendix A. Budget Sequestration
Sequestration is a process to reduce federal spending through automatic, largely across-the-board
reductions that permanently cancel mandatory and/or discretionary budget authority.40
Sequestration is triggered as a budget enforcement mechanism when federal spending would
exceed statutory budget goals.41 Sequestration is currently authorized by the Budget Control Act
of 2011 (BCA; P.L. 112-25).
Table A-1 shows the rates of sequestration that have been announced and the total amounts of
budget authority that have been cancelled from accounts in Agriculture appropriations. Table A-2
provides additional detail at the account level for mandatory accounts.
Table A-1. Sequestration from Accounts in Agriculture Appropriations
(budget authority that was sequestered, in millions of dollars)
Discretionary Accounts
Mandatory Accounts

Fiscal Year
Rate
Amount
Rate
Amount
2013
5.0%
1,153
5.1%
713
2014
—
—
7.2%
1,052
2015
—
—
7.3%
1,153
2016
—
—
6.8%
1,819
2017
—
—
6.9%
1,686
2018
—
—
6.6%
1,316
2019
—
—
6.2%
1,530
Source: CRS, compiled from OMB, Reports to the Congress on the Joint Committee Reductions, various fiscal years.
Available for FY2018-FY2019 at https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/legislative/sequestration-reports-orders and
for FY2013-FY2017 at https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/omb/legislative_reports/sequestration.
Notes: Sequestration rates listed here are for nonexempt, nondefense accounts. Amount totals were computed
by CRS as compiled in Table A-2.
Discretionary Spending
For discretionary spending, sequestration is authorized through FY2021 if discretionary defense
and nondefense spending exceed caps that are specified in statute (2 U.S.C. 901(c)).
In FY2013, the timing of the appropriations acts and the first year of sequestration resulted in
triggering sequestration on discretionary spending.
In FY2014-FY2018, Bipartisan Budget Acts in 2013, 2015, and 2018 (BBAs; P.L. 113-67, P.L.
114-74, and P.L. 115-123, respectively) have avoided sequestration on discretionary spending.
These BBAs raised the discretionary budget caps that were placed in statute by the BCA and
allowed Congress to enact larger appropriations than would have been allowed.
For FY2019, the BBA in 2018 similarly provides a higher discretionary cap that may avoid
sequestration (see “Discretionary Budget Caps and Subcommittee Allocations”).

40 CRS Report R43411, The Budget Control Act of 2011: Legislative Changes to the Law and Their Budgetary Effects.
41 CRS Report R42972, Sequestration as a Budget Enforcement Process: Frequently Asked Questions.
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Mandatory Spending
Authorization of Sequestration
For mandatory spending, sequestration is presently authorized through FY2027, having been
amended and extended by acts that were subsequent to the BCA (2 U.S.C. 901a(6)). That is,
sequestration continues to apply annually to certain accounts of mandatory spending and is not
avoided by the BBAs (Table A-1).
The original FY2021 sunset on the sequestration of mandatory accounts has been extended four
times as an offset to pay for avoiding sequestration on discretionary spending in the near term or
as a general budgetary offset for other authorization acts:
1. Congress extended the duration of mandatory sequestration by two years (until
FY2023) as an offset in BBA 2013.42
2. Congress extended it by another year (until FY2024) to maintain retirement
benefits for certain military personnel (P.L. 113-82).
3. Congress extended sequestration on nonexempt mandatory accounts another year
(until FY2025) as an offset in BBA 2015.43
4. Congress extended sequestration on nonexempt mandatory accounts by another
two years (until FY2027) as an offset in BBA 2018 (P.L. 115-123 Division C,
§30101(c)).44
Exemptions from Sequestration
Some farm bill mandatory programs are exempt from sequestration. Those expressly exempt by
statute are the nutrition programs (SNAP, the child nutrition programs, and the Commodity
Supplemental Food Program)45 and the Conservation Reserve Program.46 Some prior legal
obligations in the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation47 and the farm commodity programs may
be exempt48 as determined by OMB.49
Generally speaking, the experience since FY2013 is that OMB has ruled that most of crop
insurance is exempt from sequestration, while the farm commodity programs, disaster assistance,
and most conservation programs have been subject to it.50

42 CBO, Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, December 11, 2013, https://www.cbo.gov/publication/44964.
43 CBO, Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, October 28, 2015, https://www.cbo.gov/publication/50938. In addition to
extending sequestration and related to mandatory spending in agriculture, crop insurance was used as an additional
budgetary offset in BBA 2015. The effect was temporary, however, and the crop insurance reduction was restored. For
more background, see the section on crop insurance and the Standard Reinsurance Agreement in CRS Report R44240,
Agriculture and Related Agencies: FY2016 Appropriations.
44 CBO, Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, February 8, 2018, https://www.cbo.gov/publication/53556.
45 2 U.S.C. 905 (h).
46 2 U.S.C. 905(g)(1)(A).
47 2 U.S.C. 905 (g)(2).
48 2 U.S.C. 906 (j).
49 Some administrative expenses may be subject to sequestration, and therefore programs that are otherwise exempt
may have a relatively small sequesterable amount compared to their total budget authority as shown, for example, in
Table A-2 for the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, SNAP, child nutrition programs, and WIC.
50 CRS Report R42050, Budget “Sequestration” and Selected Program Exemptions and Special Rules.
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Agriculture and Related Agencies: FY2019 Appropriations

Implementation of Sequestration
Sequestration on nonexempt mandatory accounts continues in FY2019. Nonexempt mandatory
spending is to be reduced by a 6.2% sequestration rate and thus paid at 93.8% of what they would
otherwise have provided. This results in a reduction of about $1.5 billion from mandatory
agriculture accounts in FY2019.
Table A-2. Sequestration of Mandatory Accounts in Agriculture Appropriations
(sequestered budget authority in millions of dollars)
FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2017 FY2018 FY2019

Sequestration rate on nonexempt, nondefense mandatory
accounts
5.1%
7.2%
7.3%
6.8%
6.9%
6.6%
6.2%
U.S. Department of Agriculture

Office of the Secretary
—
—
0.9
0.9
0.9
0.9
0.8
Office of Chief Economist
—
—
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
Agricultural Research Service
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
—
—
—
9.9
10.0
—
—
Extension
0.3
0.4
1.8
—
—
3.3
0.3
Biomass Research and Development
—
—
0.2
0.2
0.2
—
—
Integrated Activities
—
—
7.3
—
—
6.6
5.0
Farm Production and Conservation Business Center
—
—
—
—
—
—
3.7
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

Salaries appropriation
13.6
18.8
21.5
20.1
19.5
18.8
52.1
Miscellaneous Trust Funds
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
Food Safety Inspection Service
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
Grain Inspection Packers and Stockyards Admin.
2.1
3.0
3.0
3.1
3.1
2.9
—

Agricultural Marketing Service

Section 32
40.4
79.7
81.9
77.3
79.6
78.1
74.4
Milk Market Orders Assessment Fund
2.9
4.2
4.2
4.0
4.1
4.0
3.8
Perishable Agriculture Commodities Act
0.6
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.8
0.7
0.7
Expenses and refunds
0.4
0.9
0.9
1.3
1.3
0.4
0.4
Payments to states and possessions
—
—
5.3
5.0
5.0
5.6
5.3
Marketing services
—
—
2.2
2.0
2.1
2.0
3.0
Risk Management Agency
—
—
—
—
0.6
—
—
Federal Crop Insurance Corporation
3.0
4.2
5.9
3.5
3.9
3.7
5.0

Farm Service Agency

Commodity Credit Corporation Fund
329.5
573.7
710.8 1,388.6 1,238.6
904.1
1,088.2
Agricultural Credit Insurance Corporation
—
—
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
Commodity Credit Corporation Export Loans
—
—
—
0.4
0.4
0.3
0.3
Pima Cotton Trust Fund
—
—
—
1.1
1.1
1.1
—
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FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2017 FY2018 FY2019

Wool Apparel Manufacturers Trust Fund
—
—
—
2.0
2.1
2.0
1.9
Agricultural Disaster Relief Fund
70.0
—
—
—
—
—
—
Tobacco Trust Fund
49.0
69.1
—
—
—
—
—

Natural Resources Conservation Service

Farm bil conservation programs
171.2
263.1
269.9
265.7
281.5
254.9
262.4
Watershed Rehabilitation Program
—
11.9
11.2
4.7
4.7
4.4
3.0
Damage Assessment Restoration Revolving Fund
—
—
—
—
—
—
0.1

Rural Development, Rural Business Coop. Service

Rural Energy for America Program
1.1
3.0
3.7
3.4
3.5
3.3
3.1
Economic Development Grants
—
—
—
—
—
—
0.9
Rural Microenterprise Investment Program
—
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
—
Energy Assistance Payments
3.3
3.2
1.1
1.0
1.0
1.0
—
Biorefinery Assistance Program
—
—
3.7
3.4
1.4
1.3
—
Rural Economic Development Grants
—
—
—
1.6
—
—
—
Foreign Agricultural Service
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1

Food and Nutrition Servicea

SNAP
4.7
8.0
8.4
9.8
10.6
9.6
9.2
Child Nutrition Programs
2.5
4.2
4.2
3.9
4.3
4.0
3.9
Commodity Assistance Program
1.1
1.5
1.5
1.4
1.4
1.4
1.3
WIC
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1

Related Agencies

Food and Drug Administration

Revolving Fund for Certification
0.4
0.6
0.6
0.6
0.6
0.6
0.6
User Fees
16.3
—
—
—
—
—
—
Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation
0.2
0.3
0.3
0.3
0.3
0.3
0.2
Commodity Futures Trading Commission
0.7
0.9
1.0
2.2
2.2
0.1
0.3
Total
713.3 1,051.9 1,153.0 1,818.9 1,685.6 1,315.9 1,530.3
Source: CRS, compiled from OMB, Reports to the Congress on the Joint Committee Reductions, various fiscal years.
Available for FY2018-FY2019 at https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/legislative/sequestration-reports-orders and
for FY2013-FY2017 athttps://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/omb/legislative_reports/sequestration.
Notes: Sequestration rates are for nonexempt, nondefense accounts. The sequesterable budget authority for
each cell may be computed by dividing the amount of sequestration by the sequestration rate. Column totals
were computed by CRS based on the jurisdiction of the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee.
a. Benefits from the nutrition programs are generally exempt from sequestration by statute, but some
administrative expenses in these programs may be subject to sequestration, and therefore a relatively small
portion of the total budget authority may be sequesterable.
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Appendix B. Action on Agriculture Appropriations,
FY1996-FY2019
Table B-1. Congressional Action on Agriculture Appropriations Since FY1996

House Action
Senate Action
Final Appropriation

Fiscal
CRS
Year
Subcmte.
Cmte.
Floor
Subcmte.
Cmte.
Floor
Enacteda
Public Law
Report
1996
6/14/1995
6/27/1995
7/21/1995
9/13/1995
9/14/1995
9/20/1995
10/21/1995
E P.L. 104-37
95-624
1997
5/30/1996
6/6/1996
6/12/1996
7/10/1996
7/11/1996
7/24/1996
8/6/1996
E P.L. 104-180
IB96015
1998
6/25/1997
7/14/1997
7/24/1997
7/15/1997
7/17/1997
7/24/1997
11/18/1997
E P.L. 105-86
97-201
1999
6/10/1998
6/16/1998
6/24/1998
6/9/1998
6/11/1998
7/16/1998
10/21/1998 O P.L. 105-277
98-201
2000
5/13/1999
5/24/1999
6/8/1999
6/15/1999
6/17/1999
8/4/1999
10/22/1999
E P.L. 106-78
RL30201
2001
5/4/2000
5/16/2000
7/11/2000
5/4/2000
5/10/2000
7/20/2000
10/28/2000
E P.L. 106-387
RL30501
2002
6/6/2001
6/27/2001
7/11/2001 Pol ed outb 7/18/2001 10/25/2001 11/28/2001
E P.L. 107-76
RL31001
2003
6/26/2002
7/26/2002
—
7/23/2002
7/25/2002
—
2/20/2003
O P.L. 108-7
RL31301
2004
6/17/2003
7/9/2003
7/14/2003
7/17/2003
11/6/2003
11/6/2003
1/23/2004
O P.L. 108-199
RL31801
2005
6/14/2004
7/7/2004
7/13/2004
9/8/2004
9/14/2004
—
12/8/2004
O P.L. 108-447
RL32301
2006
5/16/2005
6/2/2005
6/8/2005
6/21/2005
6/27/2005
9/22/2005
11/10/2005
E P.L. 109-97
RL32904
2007
5/3/2006
5/9/2006
5/23/2006
6/20/2006
6/22/2006
—
2/15/2007
Y P.L. 110-5
RL33412
2008
7/12/2007
7/19/2007
8/2/2007
7/17/2007
7/19/2007
—
12/26/2007 O P.L. 110-161
RL34132
2009
6/19/2008
—
—
Pol ed outb 7/17/2008
—
3/11/2009
O P.L. 111-8
R40000
2010
6/11/2009
6/18/2009
7/9/2009
Pol ed outb
7/7/2009
8/4/2009
10/21/2009
E P.L. 111-80
R40721
2011
6/30/2010
—
—
Pol ed outb 7/15/2010
—
4/15/2011
Y P.L. 112-10
R41475
2012
5/24/2011
5/31/2011
6/16/2011 Pol ed outb
9/7/2011
11/1/2011
11/18/2011 O P.L. 112-55
R41964
2013
6/6/2012
6/19/2012
—
Pol ed outb 4/26/2012
—
3/26/2013
O P.L. 113-6
R43110
2014
6/5/2013
6/13/2013
—
6/18/2013
6/20/2013
—
1/17/2014
O P.L. 113-76
R43110
2015
5/20/2014
5/29/2014
—
5/20/2014
5/22/2014
—
12/16/2014 O P.L. 113-235
R43669
2016
6/18/2015
7/8/2015
—
7/14/2015
7/16/2015
—
12/18/2015 O P.L. 114-113
R44240
2017
4/13/2016
4/19/2016
—
5/17/2016
5/19/2016
—
5/5/2017
O P.L. 115-31
R44588
2018
6/28/2017
7/12/2017
9/14/2017
7/18/2017
7/20/2017
—
3/23/2018
O P.L. 115-141
R45128
2019
5/9/2018
5/16/2018
—
5/22/2018
5/24/2018
8/1/2018
—
—
—
R45230
Source: CRS.
a. E = Enacted as standalone appropriation (seven times over 22 years); O = Omnibus appropriation (13
times); Y = Year-long CR (two times).
b. A procedure that permits a Senate subcommittee to transmit a bil to its ful committee without a formal
markup session. See CRS Report RS22952, Proxy Voting and Polling in Senate Committee.

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Agriculture and Related Agencies: FY2019 Appropriations

Author Information

Jim Monke

Specialist in Agricultural Policy

Key Policy Staff
Area of Expertise
Name
Agricultural appropriations, USDA budget
Jim Monke
Agricultural Marketing Service
Joel Greene
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Sahar Angadjivand
Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Rena Mil er
Conservation
Megan Stubbs
Crop insurance
Isabel Rosa
Disaster assistance
Megan Stubbs
Farm Service Agency
Jim Monke
Food and Drug Administration
Agata Dabrowska
Food safety, generally
Renée Johnson
Food safety, meat and poultry inspection
Joel Greene
International food aid
Alyssa Casey
Nutrition and domestic food assistance
Randy Alison Aussenberg
Kara Clifford Bil ings
Research and extension
Tadlock Cowan
Rural development
Tadlock Cowan
Trade
Jenny Hopkinson

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