# Senate releases 2026 farm bill draft focusing on crop insurance, conservation  
**Published:** 2026-06-29T09:00:18.000Z  
**Source:** [Nebraska Examiner](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/29/repub/senate-farm-bill-draft-focuses-on-farm-economy-keeps-big-beautiful-snap-cuts/)  
**AI-generated:** yes (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001)  
**Canonical:** https://lincolne.news/article/senate-releases-2026-farm-bill-draft-focusing-on-crop-insurance-conservation

The U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee released its initial draft of the 2026 farm bill on Monday, advancing an omnibus proposal that covers crop insurance, conservation programs and nutrition assistance nearly two months after the House passed its version.

The [Agricultural Act of 2026](https://www.agriculture.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/agricultural_act_of_2026_1v2wnokdla9hu.pdf), introduced by Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman, R-Ark., expands crop insurance coverage and shifts funding in conservation programs while maintaining changes to food assistance made in Republicans' 2025 spending legislation.

"I'm proud to put forward this discussion draft that reflects the input and priorities of Republicans, Democrats, and most importantly, rural America," Boozman said in a statement. "This bill is built for the people who feed America."

The draft is broadly similar to the House proposal advanced at the end of April, but Senate Republicans omitted several provisions sought by agricultural stakeholders. The bill does not include language livestock industries requested to prevent state-specific laws from affecting production standards, nor does it address pesticide labeling or year-round sales of higher ethanol blends.

The farm bill, typically reauthorized every five years, has not been fully renewed since 2018. Congress has extended the 2018 law multiple times as lawmakers struggled to reach compromise, with the current extension running through September 30, 2026.

Democratic lawmakers and anti-hunger advocates criticized the draft for maintaining cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program enacted through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act in 2025. Senate Agriculture Committee Democrats said in a statement the proposal fails to address what they called "devastating cuts" to SNAP.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities warned that shifting 5% to 15% of total SNAP benefit costs to states will cost states an estimated $9 billion. Ty Jones Cox, vice president for food assistance at the center, urged Congress to delay the October 2027 implementation of that provision.

The Senate draft does expand transparency requirements for SNAP, requiring agencies to report all payment errors regardless of dollar amount, compared with current rules that only track errors exceeding $58. Data shows [only nine states](https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/briefs/iowa-one-of-nine-states-that-wont-have-to-match-portion-of-federal-snap-benefits/) had error rates below the 6% threshold that keeps programs 100% federally funded under the new rules.

The draft includes modernized farm loan programs and expanded crop insurance coverage to better support farmers facing challenging economic conditions. The bill also expands eligible produce and dairy in federal nutrition programs and creates a new local food purchasing program with $200 million in authorization through 2031, similar to a pandemic-era initiative that has ended.

The Senate Agriculture Committee will move toward markup of the bill after returning from recess in mid-July. Once both chambers pass versions, a conference committee will negotiate differences before sending final legislation to President Trump.

## Sources

- [Nebraska Examiner](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/29/repub/senate-farm-bill-draft-focuses-on-farm-economy-keeps-big-beautiful-snap-cuts/)
- [Senate Agriculture Committee press release and bill text on Agricultural Act of 2026](https://www.agriculture.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/agricultural_act_of_2026_1v2wnokdla9hu.pdf)
- [Iowa Capital Dispatch on state SNAP payment error rates](https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/briefs/iowa-one-of-nine-states-that-wont-have-to-match-portion-of-federal-snap-benefits/)
- [Senate Agriculture Committee Democrats statement on farm bill concerns](https://www.agriculture.senate.gov/newsroom/dem/press/release/statement-from-agriculture-committee-democrats-on-senate-republicans-farm-bill-discussion-draft)

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This article was generated by AI (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) based on source material from Nebraska Examiner, enriched with 2 web searches. The original source is available at https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/06/29/repub/senate-farm-bill-draft-focuses-on-farm-economy-keeps-big-beautiful-snap-cuts/.