June 10, 2025

Contents

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

What We’re Watching

Congress 

Budget Reconciliation

This week, the Senate will work through their version of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” reconciliation package. Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has given the GOP until the July 4 recess to get the bill through the Senate without changing it so much that the House cannot vote it through. The Senate Finance Committee has still yet to receive legislative text, which includes some of the more controversial provisions, like Medicaid, energy tax credits, and other contentious tax issues. It is also unclear how Majority Leader Thune will adjust the SNAP provisions, which have raised concerns among vulnerable Senators. The Senate Ag bill is expected to be released this week.

Once all pieces of the text have been released to Senate Committees, it will have to go through the Byrd Bath Rule process, which may complicate certain provisions of the text, ultimately ruling certain provisions ineligible for reconciliation. Once the bill goes through the Parliamentarian, it will be heard on the full Senate floor in a vote-a-rama, which could take a few days, and then would have to be passed quickly through the House to make the July 4 deadline.  

FY26 Appropriations

The House Agriculture-FDA Appropriations Subcommittee held a brief hearing on the FY2026 Appropriations bill, which passed on party lines to the full committee. The House Appropriations Committee will hold a markup on Wednesday, where amendments will be allowed on the floor. The full subcommittee mark can be found here, and a summary can be found here.

Senate Democrats Hold Hearing on SNAP

Last week, Senate Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Senator Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), and other Committee Democrats held a Senate Spotlight Forum titled “Hunger by Design: The GOP’s Assault on SNAP.” The hearing featured testimony from a mother who relies on SNAP, representatives from academia, and employees who administer the program in states. The witnesses discussed the consequences of the House proposal, saying it could reduce or end food assistance for millions of beneficiaries, as well as straining state budgets with the cost-share structure. 

Administration

Farm Groups Meet with USDA on MAHA

The White House has invited around 50 food industry stakeholders to meet on the MAHA Commission report, which was released in May and raised a number of concerns around pesticides, the role of farmers, and nutrition. Groups that were invited include large organizations representing specialty crops, agricultural inputs, proteins like meat and dairy, fast food representatives, restaurant industry groups, small commodity groups, large and regional grocers, and then beverage and trade groups. The next MAHA Commission report will be released in August outlining policy recommendations.

USDA Nominee Stephen Vaden Confirmation This Week

The Senate is looking to vote to proceed with the confirmation process for Stephen Vaden to be the deputy secretary at the Department of Agriculture. His nomination has passed out of the Senate Agriculture Committee, and the full Senate invoked cloture to move to a floor vote on Thursday. Vaden currently serves as a judge on the U.S. Court of International Trade and served as General Counsel of the USDA in the first Trump administration.

USDA and HHS Hold Event on SNAP Waivers

USDA Secretary Rollins and HHS Secretary Kennedy will be hosting a briefing this afternoon, alongside Governors Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R-AR) and Mike Braun (R-IN) to discuss SNAP waivers. So far, Iowa, Indiana, and Nebraska have received the first waiver approvals to restrict various items, like soda, candy, and certain snacks, from the program. The event will begin at 4:45 PM and the press release can be found here.

Updated List of Steel & Aluminum Products Subject to New 50% Tariff Released

The White House has determined that it is necessary and appropriate to increase the tariff rate for imports of steel articles and derivative steel articles, and aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles, from 25 percent ad valorem to 50 percent ad valorem effective as of June 4, 2025. Further, the Administration made modifications to the affected products as outlined in a recent Federal Register notice. Steel and aluminum products, and their derivatives, from the United Kingdom will receive different treatment due to the efforts underway with the implementation of the U.S.-UK Economic Prosperity Deal of May 8, 2025 (EPD).

FDA Hosts Panel on Infant Formula

The FDA hosted a panel last week to discuss the administration’s plan for Operation Stork Speed, which is an initiative to examine the current state of the infant formula market and review its nutritional profile. The FDA is currently seeking public input on whether nutrient requirements should be revised, but as part of the initiative, the FDA was directed to host a roundtable featuring academics, pediatric doctors, and pediatric surgeons. FDA Commissioner Marty Makary had heavily criticized the inclusion of seed oils in formula, despite seed oils being an FDA requirement for inclusion in formula products. 

Notable News

• Food Prices Fell in May on Cheaper Cereal, Sugar and Vegetable Oil, UN Says – WSJ
• Pennsylvania is suing the USDA over cutting funding to a $1 billion food aid program for states – AP
• Appeals Court Spares Trump’s Tariffs While It Considers Challenge – New York Times
• Farmers are taking on more debt. Some worry more financial stress could be ahead – Nebraska Public Media
• Concerns about the rising cost of farm labor – ABC News
• USDA says demand for sensitive food stamp data from states is on hold – NPR

This Week’s Legislation

• Congresswoman Andrea Salinas (D-OR) introduced the Farmers Feeding America Act that would expand the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) ability to purchase food directly from producers.
• Congresswoman Celeste Maloy (R-UT) introduced the Public Land Search and Rescue Act to establish a grant program to assist states with the costs of search and rescue activities on federal land under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. 
• Congressman Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) introduced the Fighting Foreign Illegal Seafood Harvest (FISH) Act to address illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing by foreign vessels.
• Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NM) introduced the Strategic Grazing to Reduce the Risk of Wildfire Act, which would direct the Department of the Interior (DOI) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to create a strategy on targeted grazing to manage hazardous fuels and reduce risks from wildfires.

Upcoming Hearings

Wednesday, June 11

• 10:00 AM: The House Agriculture Committee will hold a hearing titled “For the purpose of receiving testimony from The Honorable Brooke L. Rollins, Secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture.”
• 10:00 AM: The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing to examine the President’s proposed budget request for fiscal year 2026 for the Department of the Interior.
• 10:15 AM: The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment will hold a hearing titled “Short-Circuiting Progress: How the Clean Air Act Impacts Building Necessary Infrastructure and Onshoring American Innovation.”

Thursday, June 12

• 10:00 AM: The House Natural Resource Committee will hold a hearing to examine the President’s FY 2026 Budget Request for the Department of the Interior.
• 2:00 PM: The House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance will hold a hearing titled “Housing in the Heartland: Addressing our Rural Housing Needs”

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.