Farm Bill passes U.S. House, heads to Senate

Not long ago, lawmakers took an encouraging first step to pass a Farm Bill. Less than two months later, on April 30, the legislation passed the full House of Representatives by a vote of 224-200.

Among its many elements that direct food and agriculture, the Farm Bill makes our country’s single largest investment in conservation on private lands. Legislation that will truly meet the moment must include strong conservation elements—the sum of the parts should improve water quality, soil health, wildlife habitat and more.

The House bill, The Farm, Food and National Security Act of 2026 (H.R. 7567), was led by House Agriculture Chair Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-Pa.). Many of its elements, including positive steps for conservation, are the same as the version passed by the House Agriculture Committee in March. Other elements were amended in the process.

Changes made on the House floor relating to conservation included:

• Removal of controversial pesticide preemption language, which would have prevented states from imposing their own warning label requirements, and protected pesticide manufacturers from liability if they failed to disclose potential health risks of their products.
• Codification of the Conservation Reserve Program’s (CRP) State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) Initiative, which provides resources for practices that restore wildlife habitat to meet state wildlife conservation goals. These practices include buffers, wetlands, trees and grass cover.  
• Allowing for farmer cooperatives to receive USDA funding for farmer-to-farmer conservation education and technical assistance.

Positive features of the legislation that would advance conservation and get more beneficial land management practices on the ground include:

• A new program that would provide resources to states and Tribes to improve soil health. The proposal is designed to give a boost to state-level programs and complement existing federal efforts, and is based on ideas originally conceived of by League staff. As proposed, $100 million per year would be available to support technical assistance, financial assistance, on-farm research, education, outreach to producers, outcome monitoring and other eligible functions.
• Important action on the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) to reauthorize the program through 2031 and maintain national enrollment at 27 million acres. This would align CRP with other major conservation programs and create stability for farmers, ranchers and landowners in their future planning.
• Wise moves to steward taxpayer resources and promote fairness among conservation program applicants. The legislation would reinstate long-standing payment limits for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) and set a minimum CSP payment of $4,000.
• Creation of a Forest Conservation Easement Program (FCEP) designed for voluntary easements on privately-owned forests to incentivize conservation, support wildlife habitat and sequester carbon.
• Allowing for EQIP and CSP to be used on the same acres, but for different purposes, as Grassland CRP. This proposal aligns with elements of the bipartisan Habitat Connectivity on Working Lands Act (H.R.2235).

There are a number of items that should be improved before the bill becomes law, including:

• The state and Tribal soil health grant program is a strong proposal with the potential to boost existing programs and inspire new efforts across the country. However, in the draft, the program is housed within CSP and would ultimately redirect program funds. In its own right, CSP is one of the strongest drivers of soil health, water quality and other beneficial conservation practices across the country—and for years, program demand has outpaced available resources. The draft could be improved by locating the soil health program elsewhere and keeping CSP’s funding intact.
• While the draft takes the critical step to reauthorize CRP, lawmakers should take the opportunity to make common-sense improvements to the program, such as reestablishing cost-share for mid-contract management and raising dated payment limits. The Farm Bill Congress ultimately passes should include elements proposed in the bipartisan CRP Improvement and Flexibility Act (S.2608, H.R.5111).
• The draft includes multiple provisions that privilege precision agriculture technology within conservation programs, including up to 90% cost-share in EQIP and additional payments in CSP. While precision agriculture has its place, research points to modest gains for water quality and soil health. In contrast, the technology, which would ultimately be subsidized by the taxpayer, is often expensive. Lawmakers should ensure that program resources are used strategically and prioritize practices with the biggest return on investment, such as soil health management practices.

While we are closer to a new Farm Bill than we have been in eight years, there are many more steps for it to become law. Now, all eyes are on the U.S. Senate to see what priorities and timeline they will have for a Farm Bill. Senate negotiations will be led by Agriculture Chairman John Boozman (R-Ark.) and Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.). Then, the House and Senate versions will need to be reconciled.

The Izaak Walton League will track this legislation and advocate for its improvement, in the name of conservation, every step of the way.