Budzinski, Johnson Introduce Bipartisan BASE Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski (IL-13) and Congressman Dusty Johnson (SD-AL) introduced the Balanced Agricultural Support and Efficiency (BASE) Act to require the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to update base acres for all farms as soon as is practicable. The last mandatory update was completed in 1985; the last voluntary update was completed in 2014.

"The current base acre allocations do not accurately reflect what's really being planted across the United States. For the folks I represent in Illinois, it's simply not fair," said Congresswoman Budzinski. "This legislation will finally bring fairness back to base acreage for the first time in 40 years, see that farmers are accurately supported for what they grow today, and ensure that we serve as better stewards of taxpayer dollars."

"It's been four decades since the last mandatory update, and production agriculture has changed drastically since then," said Congressman Johnson. "Changing global markets, high inflation, and black swan events over the past five years have changed farmers inputs and outputs. Updating base acres will help support our farmers."

"Illinois Corn Growers Association strongly supports the one-time mandatory base acre update. This update is an important step in ensuring that farm programs remain fair, fiscally responsible, and aligned with the crops farmers are actually planting. By modernizing the system, we can improve program integrity and provide more accurate support for farmers today," said Mark Bunselmeyer, Vice President of IL Corn Growers Association and farmer from Maroa, IL.

"We need a modernized safety net that benefits active farmers. Farmers in South Dakota face high input costs, low prices and widening basis," said Taylor Sumption, President, South Dakota Corn Growers Association. "The South Dakota Corn Growers Association greatly appreciates Representative Johnson working to level the playing field on behalf of our corn producers."

The Balanced Agricultural Support and Efficiency (BASE) Act:

• Requires USDA to update base acres for all farms as soon as practicable after enactment.
  1. Updates are based on a five-year average of acres planted (or prevented from planting due to disasters), using 2020-2024 planting history. No crop year from 2020-2024 may be excluded, even if nothing was planted.
  2. If acreage was devoted to more than one covered commodity (other than double-cropping), producers may elect which crop to count - but not both.
  3. The update accounts for disasters like prevented planting acres caused by drought, flood, or other uncontrollable events.
• Removes "generic base acres." Outdated provisions are eliminated, with conforming changes to yield, payment, and coverage calculations.

Full text of the bill can be found here.

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