WASHINGTON, DC — House Committee on Agriculture Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson (PA-15) delivered the following statement today in front of the Rules Committee as it considered the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026.
Statement as prepared:
Thank you, Chairwoman Foxx, Ranking Member McGovern, and Members of the committee. I appreciate the opportunity to come before you today concerning the farm bill.
First, I would like to acknowledge the loss the agriculture committee has experienced this year. Doug LaMalfa and David Scott were friends, brothers in the Lord, and staunch advocates for rural America. We miss them dearly, but we are proud to honor them in the farm bill this year by naming programs in their memory. Their legacies will live on in the David A. Scott 1890s Scholarship Program and the Doug LaMalfa Rural Schools Act.
The Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 is years in the making. Producers have operated under an extension of 2018 policy since 2023. This cannot continue.
Producers are currently facing some of the toughest times in the farm economy since the 1980s farm crisis, and the simple fact is that 2018 policies are no match for 2026 challenges.
This bill is unique because it wasn’t written in Washington — it was written out in the fields and pastures of our great nation. We visited 43 states and one territory while holding over 150 farm bill listening sessions. This is in addition to the countless hearings and meetings we held with producers in DC.
Through these efforts, we heard a lot of different needs, but everyone agreed on one thing: Congress needed to get to work and pass a new farm bill.
As of today, over 500 stakeholder organizations have expressed public support for the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026. I would like to say that again — 500 organizations support this bill.
That number alone shows how worthy this bill is of our time. Stakeholders across the country and throughout the entire agricultural supply chain support the 2026 farm bill, and they are counting on us to bring it home.
The Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 is also a bipartisan bill, and that is by design. We are not playing political games with the future of rural America. We are focused on policy that threads the needle of responsible spending and meaningful impact back home.
Today, you will hear some comments against the bill from my Ranking Member, and I respect her views and her right to express them.
However, opposition from my Ranking Member does not change the fact that this is a bipartisan farm bill.
Seven Democrats on the Agriculture Committee voted for this bill last month after a markup that lasted over 22 hours and included debate on over a hundred amendments.
Adopted amendments during markup were split evenly between Republicans and Democrats.
And when you consider the almost 200 marker bills that were incorporated into the base text of the farm bill, 82 percent were bills with bipartisan cosponsors.
These are facts. Loud opposition from a select few does not change them.
I have great respect for the Chairwoman, the Ranking Member, and the Members of this committee. I trust that you all will work in good faith to ensure the farm bill debate is a fair, informed, and worthy one.
Before us, we have an opportunity to do some real good for rural America. Thank you once again for the opportunity to come before you today.
