Bipartisan legislation has been reintroduced in the U.S. Senate to help improve risk management and financial resources for farmers.

Senate Ag Committee Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar stressed the need to close crop insurance gaps for beginning farmers and veterans during a recent hearing.

“Many small, diversified producers face challenges with buying crop insurance policies, particularly cost,” she explains.

The Minnesota Democrat and Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota have introduced the Crop Insurance for Future Farmers Act to expand premium discounts through an applicant’s first ten years of farming.

Representatives Randy Feenstra of Iowa and Angie Craig of Minnesota have introduced companion legislation in the House.

Klobuchar has also reintroduced the Producer and Agricultural Credit Enhancement (PACE) Act with North Dakota Republican John Hoeven to update USDA loan limits.

“One of the ways we can give you that certainty is by making sure you have access to affordable and reliable credit, and that can mean the difference between economic viability and foreclosure,” she said during the hearing.

Minnesota Republican Brad Finstad and House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Angie Craig have introduced a companion bill in the House.

Source: Brownfield Ag News