Whether you care about hunger and nutrition, climate change, or Native self-determination, you should be watching closely as Congress moves the “farm bill” towards passage this summer. The farm bill is a massive piece of federal legislation that shapes U.S. food, agriculture, conservation, and energy policy including programs that support farmers, rural communities and SNAP food assistance.
The United States is overdue for a farm bill. While Congress typically passes a farm bill every five years, the last bill was enacted in 2018. Passage is important to meet the needs of farmers and families. However, the House-passed farm bill—the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 (H.R. 7567)—falls short. Senators should improve H.R. 7567 by better addressing nutrition and environmental issues as well as the needs of Native communities.
Nutrition
First, the House farm bill fails to mitigate damage from the devastating cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBA, P.L. 119-21). Since the OBBBA’s enactment last summer, 3 million people have already lost their SNAP benefits.
We are especially troubled by the looming benefit cost shift—a first in the program’s history—which will force states to pay a portion of SNAP benefits based on the state’s administrative error rate. States have been working to address these administrative challenges, but delayed guidance from the Department of Agriculture, combined with the prolonged government shutdown in 2025, have prevented states from updating their systems in time. Since states cannot afford to pay tens or hundreds of millions of dollars in SNAP benefits, many people will continue to lose access to SNAP. The farm bill needs to address this looming hunger crisis by giving all states extra time to reduce their error rates.
Congress already gave a few states extra time to reduce their administrative error rates, but most states are scrambling to meet the September deadline. A farm bill is one of Congress’s last chances to give all states the same additional two years to get their error rates down. For the sake of parity, FCNL joins many other organizations, including the National Governor’s Association, to ask that all states receive the same delay.
Clean Energy
In addition to nutrition, the House farm bill falls short on clean energy. The bill underfunds or restricts key programs that rural communities rely on to deploy these technologies. The Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) is historically one of the most effective tools for helping farmers and small rural businesses install solar, wind, and energy efficiency upgrades, supporting less clean energy investments than in 2024. Unfortunately, the program now faces reduced funding levels and tighter eligibility criteria.
While earlier investments temporarily boosted these programs, this farm bill does not consistently sustain or expand that momentum. Instead, it often prioritizes traditional subsidies without including strong, long-term incentives for clean energy. Without the REAP program, farmers and rural small businesses could be forced to cover 50% of upfront costs for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects.
Self-Determination
Finally, this farm bill will not extend or make permanent the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) Self-Determination Demonstration Project. FDPIR distributes food to SNAP-eligible individuals and families on Indian reservations in lieu of traditional benefits. The Demonstration Project allows tribes to purchase culturally relevant foods of their choosing to distribute alongside USDA-procured commodity foods. These items replace traditional commodity foods like canned meats and vegetables, cheese, and flour. Using the program, tribes have distributed beans, salmon, bison, wild rice, and other healthy, culturally important foods alongside USDA-procured items.
The exclusion of this program from the farm bill means that tribes will rely more on the U.S. government and will have less options to feed their citizens.
Native communities can strengthen themselves by supporting local vendors, encouraging culturally relevant and healthy food choices, and reducing reliance on the federal government’s food procurement system. Without the pilot program, tribes will have no input into what foods are provided to their citizens and will be unable to subsidize the consumption of healthier traditional foods.
Because families who are impacted by cuts to SNAP are likely to switch to the FDPIR program, the lack of healthy food will impact more people across Indian Country. The exclusion of this program from the farm bill means that tribes will rely more on the U.S. government and will have less options to feed their citizens.
Conclusion
The Senate has a crucial window of opportunity to make the 2026 farm bill a law that supports farmers, families, and the environment. By delaying the new SNAP error rate policy, supporting clean energy, and giving tribal communities power over their food supply, a new farm bill could work for all Americans. Now is the time for the Senate to write a better farm bill.
