May 13, 2025

Contents

• What We’re Watching
• Notable News
• This Week’s Legislation
• Upcoming Hearings
• Contact the Team

What We’re Watching

Congress 

Budget Reconciliation 

Three key markups of reconciliation packages will take place this week – Agriculture, Ways and Means, and Energy and Commerce. For the agriculture bill, debate over the scale and scope of the spending cuts delayed the bill’s markup, but the Committee is now moving full steam ahead with opening statements beginning this evening (Tuesday, May 13) and debate and mark up continuing on Wednesday.  

On Monday evening, Chairman GT Thompson released text of the bill, and as expected, the main pay-fors came from the nutrition title – limiting Thrifty Food Plan updates, modifying certain eligibility requirements, and amending the federal/state cost share. While the bill would cut $290 billion over ten years, some of those savings have been reinvested into Farm Bill programs. Many of these investments were included in the bill passed last year through Committee, and include updates to reference prices and a one-time base acre update, improvements to the Federal Crop Insurance Program, and investments in market development programs for US agriculture goods and research programs. The bill also moved Inflation Reduction Act conservation funding into several farm bill conservation programs to provide funding increases.  

Notable to agriculture in the Ways and Means bill, several tax provisions that were advocated for by farm groups were included. Specifically, 199A which intends to provide tax parity to the corporate tax cut, was increased from 20% to 23% and made permanent. There was also an increase in the exclusion amount for the estate tax to $15M and the level was made permanent. In addition, the Clean Fuel Production Tax Credit (45z) was included with provisions that limit feedstocks from countries other than US, Canada, and Mexico, exclude the indirect land use changes in greenhouse gas emissions calculations, and prohibit use of the credit by a foreign entity or a foreign influenced entity. The provisions would go into effect on December 31, 2025, and the credit would be extended through December 31, 2031. 

Once the House passes the bill, the Senate will take up the bill where they will be looking to move quickly but there could be changes made to what was passed in the House.  

Appropriations 

Last week, USDA Secretary Rollins was on the Hill testifying in front of the House and Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittees on the President’s FY26 budget request. She was asked about frozen funds, DOGE layoffs and reorganization plans, the impact of a trade war on farmers, and touched on nutrition and the MAHA movement. She said that she has been working on finalizing some tariff agreements and will be able to provide more information before the end of the month. 

Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy is expected to testify Wednesday before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions to discuss the President’s 2026 proposed budget for HHS. 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Secretary Lee Zeldin with also be on the Hill this week to testify before the House and Senate Appropriations Environmental Subcommittees on the proposed agency budget for FY26.

Administration

Secretary Rollins Visits the United Kingdom 

Secretary Rollins is visiting the United Kingdom from May 12-14 on her first foreign mission to discuss the commitments of Trump’s recent trade deal with the UK that secures increased access for American agricultural products, including unprecedented access for American beef and ethanol. Following Secretary Rollins’ trip to the UK in May, she will travel to Japan, Vietnam, Brazil, Peru, Italy, and India over the next five months. 

USDA Requires States to Provide SNAP Benefits Records 

USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) announced that it will require States to make certain all records associated with SNAP benefits and allotments are shared with the federal government. This guidance comes following President Trump’s Executive Order 14243, Stopping Waste, Fraud, and Abuse by Eliminating Information Silos, and prioritizes program integrity and will allow FNS transparency into the data long only held by States and Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) processors. 

FDA Expands Efforts for Unannounced Inspections on Food Imports  

The FDA has announced they will be expanding the use of unannounced inspections at foreign facilities that produce foods and medicines. This builds on a pilot program already used in India and China. The FDA will also be evaluating the agency’s policies and practices for improvements to the foreign inspection program and will take regulatory action against any firm that seeks to delay, deny, or limit an inspection.  

Department of Labor Releases Guidance on Independent Contractor Status  

The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division issued a field assistance bulletin providing guidance on how to determine employee or independent contractor status when enforcing the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Supreme Court has clarified that while there is no single rule or test for determining whether an individual is an independent contractor, they do take a number of factors into consideration, for example, the permanency of the relationship, the dynamic between the individual and employer, and the level of investment. This guidance does not change existing regulations but reflects how the department is allocating enforcement resources during the review of the 2024 rule.    

U.S.-UK Agreement in Principle Reached 

On May 8, the United Sates and United Kingdom announced that the two countries reached a framework of a trade deal. The two countries agreed to proceed with trade negotiations in the areas covering tariffs and quotas, non-tariff barriers, economic security and commercial opportunities. The non-binding agreement included commitments around opening up market access for bilateral beef trade and a preferential duty-free TRQ of 1.4 billion liters for U.S. ethanol. With the general terms outlined, the two countries will now proceed to negotiations with the intent of reaching a formalized trade agreement.  

U.S. and China Tariff De-Escalation Agreement 

Following two days of negotiations in Geneva, the U.S. and China have agreed to a 90-day stay on the bulk of the tariffs and other barriers they have imposed on one another since President Trump launched the April 2 “reciprocal” trade policy.” While there is a significant reduction in the baseline ‘reciprocal’ tariffs, other tariff measures that were put in place around International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) earlier in the year remain in place, including China’s March 4 retaliatory tariffs on U.S. food and agricultural goods. The reduced rates will apply “for an initial period of 90 days,” while the two sides pursue further talks on “economic and trade relations.”

Notable News

• The Case for Fixing Food Stamps – Wall Street Journal
• Maine Bill Would Make Oil Companies Pay into Climate Superfund – Portland Press Herald
• What Do Farmers Do In a Trade War? – NPR
• More than 15,000 USDA Employees Have Taken Trump Financial Incentive to Leave – Reuters
• Two Key Factors Determine the Fate of Biofuel Tax Credits – RFD TV
• World Food Prices Increase in April, UN FAO Says – Reuters

This Week’s Legislation

• Senator John Hoeven (R-ND) and Representative Brad Finstad (R-MN) introduced the Federal Agriculture Risk Management Enhancement and Resilience (FARMER) Act, which would strengthen crop insurance and make higher levels of coverage more affordable for producers.
• Representatives Julia Brownley (D-CA) and Chellie Pingree (D-ME) introduced the Cultivating Organic Matter through the Promotion Of Sustainable Techniques (COMPOST) Act, which would require the designation of composting as a conservation practice and activity and provide grants and loan guarantees for composting facilities and programs
• Representatives Brad Finstad (R-MN) and Jim Costa (D-CA) introduced the Linking Access to Spur Technology for Agriculture Connectivity in Rural Environments (LAST ACRE) Act, which would improve access to high-speed broadband for rural communities through the Last Acre grant program.
• Senators Peter Welch (D-VT) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) introduced the Improving Access to Nutrition Act of 2025, which would lift the three-month time limit on SNAP eligibility to allow able-bodied adults without dependents to receive benefits for longer than three months even if they are unable to find work.
• Congressman Randy Feenstra (R-IA) introduced an amendment to the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 to establish a precision agriculture loan program.

Upcoming Hearings

Tuesday, May 13 

• 10:15 AM: Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on “PBM Power Play: Examining Competition Issues in the Prescription Drug Supply Chain”
• 2:00 PM: House Ways and Means Committee will hold a markup on legislative proposals to comply with the reconciliation directive included in section 2001 of the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2025, H. Con. Res. 14 
• 3:00 PM: Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee will hold a hearing on Perspectives from the Field, Part 4: Conservation  
• 7:30 PM: House Agriculture Committee will hold a markup on the committee print to comply with reconciliation directives included in H. Con. Res. 14 Section 2001(b)(1) 

Wednesday, May 14

• 9:30 AM: House Appropriations Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies will hold a Budget Hearing on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 
• 10:00 AM: Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing on “Trade in Critical Supply Chains”
• 10:30 AM: Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies will hold a hearing to Review of the President’s Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Request for the Environmental Protection Agency
• 1:30 PM: Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee will hold a hearing on the Fiscal Year 2026 Department of Health and Human Services Budget  

Thursday, May 15 

• 10:00 AM: House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold a hearing on “Fix Our Forests: How Improved Land Management Can Protect Communities in the Wildland-Urban Interface”
• 10:00 AM: House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies will hold a Budget Hearing on the Environmental Protection Agency 
• 10:00 AM: House Appropriations Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies will hold a Budget Hearing on the U.S. Department of Labor 
• 10:00 AM: House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government will hold an Oversight Hearing on the U.S Federal Trade Commission 

Contact the Team

Feel free to contact Michael Torrey, Tara Smith, Cassandra Kuball, Barbara Patterson, Katie Naessens, Julie McClure, Nona McCoy, Danielle Nelson, Ashley Smith, Olivia Lucanie, Caroline Sowinski, Eden Lambert, Tracy Boyle, or Grace Walker with any questions or comments.

Food and agricultural organizations that need the right results in Washington, D.C. can trust Torrey Advisory Group to put its relationships, reputation, and expertise to work on your issue. Since 2005, the firm has successfully provided legislative and regulatory guidance, issues management, and association management services to a wide variety of clients. Learn more about us at torreydc.com.