House May Give Final Farm Bill Approval Thursday

May 2, 2002

The 2002 farm bill was formally filed in the House of Representatives Wednesday, the next step in the long road to final passage. The House may act on the measure today, and Senate action could follow shortly.

The six-year legislation extends some important features of current farm policy, but reverses others. Loan rates for major commodities will rise, while income payments will become more "countercyclical," moving in the opposite direction to market prices.

The House Rules Committee schedule a meeting Wednesday on the bill, and CONGRESS DAILY reported that an effort by some House members to send the bill back to the conference committee might run into parliamentary problems.