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The House Agriculture Committee is set to debate legislation today that would provide major increases in spending for agricultural research, clean energy and conservation programs.

The Biden administration is requiring all federal employees and government contractors to get vaccinated for COVID-19 and will extend the mandate to companies with at least 100 employees. 

House Democrats are proposing historic funding for conservation programs, agricultural research, renewable energy and forestry and other climate-related priorities as part of a $3.5 trillion tax and spending package.

Sources familiar with the agriculture provisions in the massive spending package Democrats are putting together expect it to include historic increases in conservation and research spending totaling nearly $36 billion.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and National Economic Council Director Brian Deese unveiled a new report that blamed consolidation in the beef, pork and poultry sectors for higher grocery store bills and unveiled new actions to address the situation.

The Agriculture Department is increasing the amount of assistance available to drought-stricken cattle producers by adding coverage for feed transportation costs to the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honey Bees and Farm-raised Fish Program.

An Agri-Pulse analysis of the compensation earned by leaders of the nation's most prominent farm, food and energy groups is beginning to reflect the months when the nation shut down and the food chain faced unprecedented challenges. But the true impacts; and their reflection in publicly available tax documents; might not be realized for another year or two.

Farmers’ worries about current conditions and their farms' financial performances started to ease in August, according to the monthly Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer.

Food and farm workers who’ve suffered financially from the COVID-19 pandemic will now be able to get help from the Department of Agriculture through grant funds totaling $700 million.

Despite an expected increase in net cash farm income this year, median total farm household income is projected to drop to $80,314 for 2020 and $79,909 in 2021, according to the Department of Agriculture.