Bacon Secures Six Priorities Included in Farm Bill Advancing Out of Committee

Washington – Rep. Don Bacon (NE-02) voted today to advance H.R. 7567, the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026, out of the House Committee on Agriculture. The bill passed with bipartisan support by a vote of 34-17 and includes all six of Rep. Bacon’s key farm bill priorities. 

The six initiatives championed by Rep. Bacon strengthen agricultural security, modernize federal programs, support beginning farmers, invest in youth leadership, and improve oversight of foreign farmland purchases.

“Passing a full five-year farm bill is about certainty for farmers, ranchers, and families. Nebraska producers need stability heading into planting season and American families need stability at the grocery store. This bill provides regulatory certainty, strengthens our crop safety net, modernizes farm loan programs, and invests in the research and innovation that keep American agriculture competitive,” said Rep. Bacon. “I am pleased that all six of our legislative priorities were included in this bill. We are strengthening oversight of foreign purchases of American farmland, enhancing agricultural cybersecurity, helping beginning farmers compete for land, supporting FFA and 4-H students, and improving SNAP administration so benefits are delivered efficiently and responsibly. Agriculture is economic security and national security, and this legislation equips producers with the tools they need to succeed.”

Rep. Bacon’s priorities included in the Farm Bill:

1. H.R. 4362 - AFIDA Improvements Act of 2025: Codifies recommendations published by the GAO to amend the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) to ensure there is timely and detailed data sharing of foreign investments in agricultural land transactions, better oversight and validation of information, and better identifies those foreign entities who do not file notification they have purchased land in the United States. This legislation will help the United States better track and combat the CCP’s efforts to buy up farmland.
2. H.R. 4156 - Support for Ownership and Investment in Land Act: Modernizes the farm loan process for America's next generation of agricultural leaders. The legislation allows the Farm Service Agency (FSA) to create a farm loan pre-approval process to allow farmers to make better decisions and not miss opportunities to expand their business operations, which will be especially useful for beginning farmers.
3. H.R. 4155 - American Agricultural Security Research Act of 2025: Establishes Centers of Excellence at higher education institutions and creates a competitive USDA grant program to strengthen our agricultural cybersecurity infrastructure.
4. H.R. 2812 - Youth Lead Act: Allows the Secretary of Agriculture to provide grants to support the operations of Future Farmers of America (FFA), 4-H, and the Scouts. These are preeminent youth leadership organizations in the United States with approximately eight million youth taking part. Participation in these organizations helps children make lifelong friendships and learn leadership and life skills.
5. H.R. 2811 - SNAP Staffing Flexibility Act of 2025: Gives states the option to hire outside contractors to help process applications during high-demand periods. This contract is terminated once the backlog is cleared.
6. H.R. 3946 - The FIGHT Act of 2025: The provision will outlaw in-person and online gambling on animal fighting. Animal fighting is a disgusting practice. The animals are often drugged to heighten their aggression and forced to keep fighting even after they’ve suffered grievous injuries such as broken bones, deep gashes, flesh tears, punctured lungs, and pierced eyes. Animal fighting is a form of organized crime, entangled with gangs and cartels, gambling, drug trafficking, illegal weapons dealing, public corruption, and various violent crimes including homicide, child abuse, and human trafficking. The provision will help to end these disgusting practices by ensuring that criminals cannot profit from individuals gambling on animal fighting.

The Farm Bill now advances to the floor of the House of Representatives.

Watch Rep. Bacon's opening remarks here and see full remarks as delivered below:

I speak in favor of the Farm Bill. I was here in the 115^th Congress when we passed the last Farm Bill. The new one is now two years over date. The last Farm Bill was great, but it's out of date. It needs to be made current again. And this Farm Bill definitely does that. In Nebraska, we’re the number one of 50 states for beef production.

We're in the top five for pork, corn, soybeans, ethanol, popcorn. It's important. I represent Omaha, and we have some AG on the sides of Omaha, particularly Saunders County. But we have tons of agribusiness and the financial health of our farmers and ranchers directly impacts all these agribusinesses in Omaha. So this Farm Bill is also important to this business community.

Some of the highlights in this bill, it's going to help our Nebraska hog producers. It’s going to provide regulatory certainty to various manufacturers. It transfers Food for Peace to the USDA and returns the program to its original intent of addressing the global hunger crisis through the purchase of U.S.-grown commodities. It reduces barriers for beginning farmers trying to gain access to credit. The bill also incentivizes further research and adoption of precision agriculture technologies. Together, these reforms meet the moment by equipping agricultural producers with the certainty and tools they need to succeed.

I am also pleased to have worked to advance multiple other initiatives that were included in this bill. These initiatives include helping farmers navigate the FSA loan application process, financially supporting FFA and 4-H students, enhancing the security of our agricultural supply chains, more effectively tracking foreign farmland purchases, and streamlining the administration of the SNAP program. I am pleased that many of these initiatives have garnered bipartisan backing and want to thank both my Republican and Democratic colleagues for their support. 

I look forward to listening to the debate on these amendments. I look forward to hopefully increasing the bipartisanship with the final bill here. But let’s not be fooled, we’ve got to get this farm bill passed for farmers and ranchers.

I yield.

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