{
  "id": "IN10710",
  "type": "CRS Insight",
  "typeId": "INSIGHTS",
  "number": "IN10710",
  "active": true,
  "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
  "versions": [
    {
      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 461827,
      "date": "2017-06-02",
      "retrieved": "2017-08-22T14:31:29.922570",
      "title": "The President\u2019s FY2018 Budget Request for Agriculture Appropriations and the Farm Bill",
      "summary": "Background\nThe Trump Administration released its first full budget request on May 23, 2017. It proposes specific amounts for the FY2018 Agriculture appropriation as well as legislative changes to various mandatory spending programs, including those in the farm bill.\nThe Administration\u2019s budget outline, released on March 16, 2017, proposed an overall 21% reduction for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and it mentioned seven specific discretionary programs for elimination or reduction. It did not address any mandatory spending proposals. (See CRS Insight IN10675, The President\u2019s FY2018 Budget Outline for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.)\nThis report separates the President\u2019s budget request into proposed changes for agriculture based on congressional jurisdiction. The proposals are likely to be treated differently in Congress because of separate appropriations and authorizing committee jurisdictions. The Appropriations committees will determine funding levels for FY2018 through the budget and appropriations process and may incorporate elements of the request. The Agriculture committees may respond to the mandatory spending proposals, which would need separate legislative action to be enacted, and the committees may wait until 2018, when the current farm bill is due for reauthorization.\nAgriculture Appropriations Request\nThe President\u2019s budget request for FY2018 proposes an estimated $5.1 billion reduction (-24%) in discretionary spending for accounts that are in the Agriculture and Related Agencies Appropriations bill (Figure 1, Table 1). This CRS estimate is preliminary and subject to rescoring by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The estimate is based on Agriculture appropriations jurisdiction, which does not cover all of USDA. It excludes the Forest Service, includes the Food and Drug Administration and, in the House, includes the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. It is also relative to the enacted FY2017 appropriation (P.L. 115-31; see CRS Report R44441, FY2017 Agriculture and Related Agencies Appropriations: In Brief) rather than the FY2017 continuing resolution that existed when the budget request was assembled.\nThe $5.1 billion reduction to Agriculture appropriations is comprised largely of the following proposals:\n$1.7 billion reduction in foreign food aid (-90%, by eliminating Food for Peace and McGovern-Dole Food for Education), \n$912 million reduction to rural development (-30%, including eliminating rural water and waste disposal grants, and the Rural Business Cooperative Service), \n$382 million reduction to agricultural research agencies (-13%), \n$260 million reduction to conservation programs (-25%), \n$250 million reduction to discretionary domestic nutrition assistance programs, primarily the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC, -3%),\n$234 million reduction to the Food and Drug Administration (-8.5%),\n$136 million reduction to animal and plant health inspection (-14%), \n$115 million reduction to Farm Service Agency operations (-7%), including a 13% reduction in the amount of ownership and operating loans that can be made to farmers, \n$1.1 billion of rescissions and limitations beyond the FY2017 level of $1.8 billion (including a $212 million rescission of prior-year funds for research facilities, and $410 million of limitations to mandatory programs beyond the FY2017 level of $744 million).\nThe request also proposes reducing USDA staffing by over 5,000 employees (-5%), including an 8% reduction at the Farm Service Agency (headquarters and county offices), 19% at Rural Development, and 10% at the Agricultural Research Service.\nFarm Bill and Other Legislative Requests\nThe President\u2019s budget request proposes nearly $240 billion of reductions over 10 years to mandatory spending programs that are in the jurisdiction of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees. The reduction includes $229 billion affecting farm bill programs, nearly $2 billion in rural development programs, and $9 billion of proposed user fees (Table 2). This Office of Management and Budget estimate is subject to rescoring by CBO. \nThis request may be an indicator of the Administration\u2019s priorities for the next farm bill, which is expected to receive legislative attention by 2018, when the current farm bill expires. The request proposes reducing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), capping crop insurance premiums, eliminating a crop insurance option, tightening income eligibility requirements for farm subsidies, reducing conservation programs, and eliminating various smaller farm bill programs such as trade promotion and specialty crop support.\nThese reductions are relative to a farm bill baseline of about $870 billion for the same period based on the January 2017 CBO baseline projection. (See CRS Report R44784, Previewing a 2018 Farm Bill.) If enacted, the $229 billion subtotal of farm bill reductions would imply a 26% reduction to the farm bill baseline over FY2018-FY2027. The SNAP proposals would be a 28% reduction to its $672 billion 10-year baseline, and the crop insurance proposals would be a 35% reduction to its $79 billion baseline.\n\nFigure 1. Discretionary Agriculture Appropriations, by Title, Since FY2008\n/\nSource: CRS. \nNotes: FY0218 data are a preliminary compilation by CRS of congressional appropriations jurisdiction based on the President\u2019s budget. Includes CFTC in Related Agencies in all years for comparability, regardless of jurisdiction. \nTable 1. President\u2019s FY2018 Request for Agriculture and Related Agencies Appropriations\n(discretionary budget authority in millions of dollars)\n\nFY2017\nFY2018\nChange from FY2017 to FY2018 Request\n\nAgency or Major Program\nP.L. 115-31\nAdmin. Request\n\n\nTitle I. Agricultural Programs\n \n \n \n \n\nDepartmental Administration\n410.1\n383.0\n-27.1\n-6.6%\n\nAgricultural Research Service\n1,269.8\n993.1\n-276.7\n-21.8%\n\nNational Institute of Food and Agriculture\n1,362.9\n1,252.8\n-110.1\n-8.1%\n\nNational Agricultural Statistics Service\n171.2\n185.7\n+14.4\n+8.4%\n\nEconomic Research Service\n86.8\n76.7\n-10.1\n-11.6%\n\nAnimal and Plant Health Inspection Service\n949.4\n812.9\n-136.5\n-14.4%\n\nAgricultural Marketing Service\n86.2\n78.6\n-7.6\n-8.8%\n\nGrain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration\n43.5\n43.0\n-0.5\n-1.2%\n\nFood Safety and Inspection Service\n1,032.1\n1,038.1\n+6.0\n+0.6%\n\nFarm Service Agency\n1,623.5\n1,508.3\n-115.2\n-7.1%\n\nRisk Management Agency\n74.8\n55.0\n-19.8\n-26.5%\n\nSubtotal\n7,110.3\n6,427.1\n-683.2\n-9.6%\n\nFSA Farm Loan Authority\n8,002.6\n6,953.9\n-1,048.7\n-13.1%\n\nTitle II. Conservation Programs\n \n \n \n \n\nConservation Operations\n864.5\n766.0\n-98.5\n-11.4%\n\nWatershed and Flood Prevention\n150.0\n0.0\n-150.0\n-100.0%\n\nWatershed Rehabilitation Program\n12.0\n0.0\n-12.0\n-100.0%\n\nSubtotal\n1,026.5\n766.0\n-260.5\n-25.4%\n\nTitle III. Rural Development\n \n \n \n \n\nSalaries and Expenses (including transfers)\n675.8\n624.0\n-51.8\n-7.7%\n\nRural Economic Infrastructure Grants\n\u2014 \n161.9\n+161.9\n\u2014 \n\nRural Housing Service\n1,654.9\n1,365.3\n-289.6\n-17.5%\n\nRural Business-Cooperative Service\n97.7\n0.0\n-97.7\n-100.0%\n\nRural Utilities Service\n639.9\n5.4\n-634.5\n-99.2%\n\nSubtotal\n3,068.3\n2,156.6\n-911.7\n-29.7%\n\nRural Development Loan Authority\n37,288.9\n33,477.0\n-3,811.9\n-10.2%\n\nTitle IV. Domestic Food Programs\n \n \n \n \n\nWomen, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program\n6,350.0\n6,150.0\n-200.0\n-3.1%\n\nCommodity Assistance Programs\n315.1\n293.6\n-21.5\n-6.8%\n\nNutrition Programs Administration\n170.7\n148.5\n-22.2\n-13.0%\n\nDiscretionary amounts in child nutrition, SNAP\n48.0\n40.9\n-7.1\n-14.7%\n\nSubtotal\n6,883.9\n6,633.1\n-250.8\n-3.6%\n\nTitle V. Foreign Assistance\n \n \n \n \n\nForeign Agricultural Service and other admin.\n205.3\n195.1\n-10.2\n-5.0%\n\nFood for Peace Title II\n1,466.0\n0.0\n-1,466.0\n-100.0%\n\nMcGovern-Dole Food for Education\n201.6\n0.0\n-201.6\n-100.0%\n\nSubtotal \n1,872.9\n195.1\n-1,677.8\n-89.6%\n\nTitle VI. Related Agencies\n \n \n \n \n\nFood and Drug Administration\n2,771.2\n2,536.7\n-234.4\n-8.5%\n\nCommodity Futures Trading Commission\n[250.0]\n250.0a\n+0.0\n+0.0%\n\nSubtotal \n[3,021.2]\n2,786.7\n-234.4\n-7.8%\n\nTitle VII. General Provisions\n \n \n \n \n\nChanges in Mandatory Program Spending\n-744.0\n-1,154.2\n-410.2\n+55.1%\n\nRescissions\n-854.0\n-1,424.7\n-570.7\n+66.8%\n\nOther appropriations\n266.0\n0.0\n-266.0\n-100.0%\n\nScorekeeping adjustments\n-524.0\n-363.0\n+161.0\n-30.7%\n\nSubtotal\n-1,855.9\n-2,941.9\n-1,086.0\n+58.5%\n\nTotals\n \n \n \n \n\nDiscretionary: Senate basis w/o CFTC\n20,877.0\n15,772.5\n-5,104.5\n-24.5%\n\nDiscretionary: House basis w/ CFTC\n[21,127.0]\n16,022.5\n-5,104.5\n-24.2%\n\nSource: CRS, using P.L. 115-31, and Office of Management and Budget, President\u2019s Budget for FY2018: Appendix, May 2017.\nNotes: FY0218 data are a preliminary compilation by CRS of congressional appropriations jurisdiction, based on the President\u2019s budget. Bracketed amounts are not in the official totals due to differing House-Senate appropriations jurisdiction for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.\nAs an independent agency, CFTC submits its budget concurrently to Congress and the Administration. CFTC is requesting a different amount in its budget justification: $281.5 million, an increase of $31.5 million (+12.6%). See CRS Insight IN10715, When an Agency\u2019s Budget Request Does Not Match the President\u2019s Request: The FY2018 CFTC Request and \u201cBudget Bypass\u201d, by Jim Monke, Rena S. Miller, and Clinton T. Brass.\nTable 2. President\u2019s Request for Mandatory Programs in Agriculture and the Farm Bill\n\n10-year reduction FY2018-FY2027 ($ billion)\n\nFarm Bill Savings\n \n\nSNAP reform (including categorical eligibility, able-bodied waivers, state matching)\n-190.9\n\nCrop Insurance Premium Subsidy Limit (create new $40,000 limit)\n-16.2\n\nEliminate Harvest Price Option (reduce crop insurance)\n-11.9\n\nAGI Eligibility Limit (tighten the limit from $900,000 to $500,000)\n-1.1\n\nConservation programs (including reductions to Agricultural Management Assistance, Regional Conservation Partnership Program, Conservation Stewardship Program)\n-5.8\n\nEliminate other programs (including Specialty Crop Block Grants, Farmers Markets Promotion, Market Access Program, Foreign Market Development, Pima Cotton and Wool trust funds)\n-3.1\n\nSubtotal of farm bill programs\n-229.0\n\nOther reductions\n\n\nEliminate Interest Payments to Rural Utilities (cushion of credit account)\n-1.4\n\nEliminate Rural Economic Development Program (cushion of credit account)\n-0.5\n\nCreate user fees\n\n\nFood Safety and Inspection Service (fee for inspections)\n-5.9\n\nSNAP Retailer Application Fee (fee to become a retailer)\n-2.4\n\nGrain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Admin. (licensing and standards development)\n-0.3\n\nAgricultural Marketing Service (to pay for marketing orders)\n-0.2\n\nAnimal and Plant Health Inspection Service (animal welfare, biotechnology, veterinary biologics)\n-0.2\n\nTotal\n-239.8\n\nSource: CRS, compiled from Office of Management and Budget, President\u2019s Budget for FY2018: Major Savings and Reforms, and Appendix, May 2017. Other parts of the budget may propose changes to programs that were not included in the Major Savings list.",
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