From conversations in the legislative halls of Washington, D.C., to farmer fields across rural America, much of the talk in agricultural circles for months has revolved around H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB),
Now, the massive piece of legislation, signed by President Trump on the Fourth of July, is being hailed by some as farm bill 1.0.
That positioning caught the attention of farmers participating in the AgriTalk Farmer Forum on Wednesday, who shared their perspective. Listen to it here:
Hazelton, N.D., farmer Mike Appert said he values the improvement farmers will potentially see from an estate tax standpoint, as well as the changes made to Section 179 IRS tax code for machinery.
“The Section 179 bonus depreciation is so important on these farming operations,” Appert said. “If you’re going to keep buying machinery and trading in your old equipment, you know, we just needed that.”
Paul Neiffer, the Farm CPA and a Top Producer columnist, noted that farmers can now take advantage of 100% bonus depreciation for assets placed in service after Jan. 19, 2025, and Section 179 has been bumped to $2.5 million for 2025.
Neiffer adds that he would rate the OBBB as a B+ for most farmers. He provides an outline of some of the key details farmers need to know in his most recent column, available here.
More Risk Management Resources
“You know, really and truly, I like what I see in this legislative package because, especially for future years, this is a significant amount of money being addressed. I really like the risk management portion,” said Garry Niemeyer, an Illinois farmer and past president of the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA).
Niemeyer is particularly pleased to see increased support for the USDA Market Access Program (MAP) and Foreign Market Development (FMD) program, which he and many other farmers believe are crucial for expanding exports and market opportunities.
“Since my early days participating in Illinois Corn Growers, back in 1995, we had been requesting more funds for these two programs. And finally, 30 years later, it happened,” Niemeyer said.
Specifically, MAP annual funding would go from the current $200 million approved to $400 million annually, while FMD would go from $34.5 million to $69 million annually.
Sen. John Boozman, said what he heard from farmers leading up to passage of the OBBB, was how important trade programs are to farmers’ economic survival and their hopes for future prosperity.
“We were able to essentially double the amount of money that we spend on trade programs,” said Boozman, (R-AR), chair of the Senate Ag Committee, on Wednesday.
Boozman also highlighted the urgent need for safety net provisions for farmers, due to rising economic stress across the nation.
“It’s just such a difficult situation,” noted Boozman, highlighting what’s happening in his home state alone. “I read an article today about bankruptcies in Arkansas, how they’re up 67% over last year, and last year was a bad year.”
Looking ahead, Boozman says he plans to visit farmers on both sides of the political aisle this summer and into the fall to gather input for developing a new farm bill.
“We’ll be talking about the farm bill and what else we need to get done,” he said. “It is difficult in farm country right now, and we need to support farmers in any way we can.”
Catch Boozman’s wide-ranging discussion with AgriTalk Host Chip Flory, available here.
Your next read: Big Beautiful Bill: What Farmers Need to Know
