Articles by Phil Brasher

The Agriculture Department will soon start distributing $6 billion in disaster relief payments for losses producers experienced in 2020 and 2021 through a wide range of natural disasters, including drought, wildfires and excessive heat and cold.

Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow says she’s “very optimistic” that substantial new funding for farm bill conservation programs will be included in the $3.5 trillion spending agreement that Democrats have announced. Stabenow has been seeking $50 billion in new conservation funding to promote climate-friendly farming practices.

Landowners will have until July 23 to apply for the Conservation Reserve Program general signup. USDA announced the deadline Tuesday. The signup opened in January, but USDA announced in April that it would increase payment rates and offer other financial incentives in a bid to get 4 million more acres enrolled in the program.

Senate Democrats are proposing to create a new tax credit for clean fuels as part of a package of tax incentives intended to address climate change.

We’re headed toward the congressional Memorial Day break with little sign of progress in negotiations over a massive infrastructure package.

The Senate Finance Committee is focusing today on how to fund a massive infrastructure package. The witnesses at today's hearing will include Shirley Bloomfield, CEO of NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association, who will be offering some options for structuring funding mechanisms.

Senate Republicans are expected to have a counterproposal on infrastructure spending by Tuesday that should have more details and could be larger than their initial $600 billion offer.

President Joe Biden’s proposal to tax capital gains at death accounts for about one-third of the revenue to pay for his American Families Plan, a sweeping package of education, health and child care benefits. That’s according to an analysis of Biden’s tax proposals by the Tax Foundation.

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai met Monday with a diverse list of agricultural groups that all have a strong stake in the success of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.