Rod M. Rejesus, Associate Professor and Extension Specialist
The House of Representatives and the Senate recently passed the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, which allows for raising the federal debt limit and boost federal spending by $80 billion in the next two years. Although this allows the government to pay for its debt obligations, the budget deal required that the increased spending be offset by cuts in other federal programs. One such area is the privately delivered and publicly-supported Federal crop insurance program, which is now viewed as the most important safety-net mechanism for agricultural producers in the country in light of the cuts to direct payments mandated by the 2014 Farm Bill.
