Yesterday, Oct. 30, the long-delayed House-Senate farm bill conference finally got underway with opening statements on both sides. Myriad smaller issues – and one big, longstanding dispute – continue to cloud the prospects for quick action. While senior members on both the House and Senate side expressed a determination to finish a farm bill before the end of the year, it remains clear that the sides remain far apart on proposed spending levels in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Since nutrition programs account for over three quarters of total farm bill expenditures, this disagreement is unlikely to be resolved absent a deal among senior leadership of both the House and Senate, and the White House.

Despite the impasse on SNAP and lesser disagreements on other matters, many parts of the farm bill are non-controversial. In particular, the Market Access Program (MAP) and Foreign Market Development Program (FMD) continue to enjoy broad bipartisan support in both the House and Senate. Absent a new farm bill, however, FMD is completely suspended. MAP’s program year is on a calendar year basis, so it will continue to operate with carryover Fiscal Year 2013 funding through December 31, but it too will shut down entirely unless it is reauthorized via a new farm bill and unless FY 2014 funding is provided. The current stalemate, therefore, is a critical threat to the nation’s proven and successful agricultural export promotion programs.

The public-private partnership partially funded by MAP and FMD has made the United States the world’s leading agricultural exporter. Further delay in the farm bill threatens significant and perhaps irreversible consequences. While the U.S. Grains Council does not lobby members of Congress, we do urge members and other stakeholders to make their concerns known to policymakers. Dec. 31 is fast approaching. The clock is ticking.