
Time is of the essence for farmers like Tiffany Bellfield El-Amin.
Bellfield El-Amin and others are looking to Congress for emergency aid in this year’s farm bill. With intense weather conditions, funding struggles, and decline in revenue, Black farmers can’t afford a delay.
After months of bickering, Republicans and Democrats reached a deal on a spending bill Tuesday to prevent a government shutdown through March 14. The bill would include a one-year extension of the farm bill, which includes $10 billion in economic assistance and $21 billion for disaster relief. The full House and Senate plan to vote this week, given the Dec. 20 midnight deadline to fund the government.
As the founder of the Kentucky Black Farmers Association, Bellfield El-Amin recognizes the information gap that exists for Black farmers regarding federal resources. It’s partly due to the limited outreach efforts from agencies within the United States Department of Agriculture.
It’s one reason why she joined about 300 Black farmers last week to connect and learn from mostly Black industry experts at the National Black Growers Council annual meeting in Charleston, South Carolina.
In her state, there’s only 493 Black farmers, 0.4% of the total farmers, according to the 2022 Census of Agriculture.
The gathering served as a reminder that there are safe spaces to listen “to people that look like me talking about USDA policy … talking about things that matter to us, not the B.S. around it,” she said. It also allowed her and others to express their frustrations to USDA state and federal employees about the challenges to sustaining and growing the number of Black farmers.

The farm bill, the largest government investment in food, farming, and rural communities, is set to address these concerns. It supports farmers and agriculture programs, food assistance programs for low-income families, conservation initiatives, and rural housing, broadband, and workforce development.
In essence, it keeps “farmers farming, families fed, and rural communities strong.”
The bill is originally renewed every five years; however, the 2018 farm bill expired two years ago. Lawmakers passed one-year extensions to last until September. It’s time to renew it again, and Congress is looking to include the farm bill in its year-end stopgap funding measure.
However, if Congress fails to reauthorize the bill by the deadline, some programs may expire or face the chopping block, while other policies may “revert to laws passed eight decades ago.” This past weekend, Republican and Democratic leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees pointed blame at each other for the delays.
What was the hold up?
They couldn’t agree on how to fund it.
Read More: Decades of USDA Racism Leave Black Farmers Fighting for Equality
House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Rep. David Scott of Georgia and Senate Agriculture Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow of Michigan — both Democrats — proposed shifting $10 billion of unspent funds from the Inflation Reduction Act into the new farm bill to use for conservation and climate programs.
But, Republicans opposed this, hoping to carry out President-elect Donald Trump’s mission to dismantle the Inflation Reduction Act. Republicans, instead, offered $12 billion for economic aid to farmers. GOP leaders considered $30 billion cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to pay for it. SNAP, which feeds more than 42 million Americans, receives the largest share of funding in the farm bill.
“The cuts that lawmakers are trying to make to SNAP in an upcoming farm bill don’t happen. And those cuts don’t currently exist in the farm bill that is still alive,” said Salaam Bhatti, SNAP director of the Food Research & Action Center. “As a result, the SNAP program stays as it is.”
Despite the infighting, they reached a compromise — with plans to revisit the legislation in 2025. This leaves the next administration — which consists of Republican trifecta entering the White House and Congress — to determine which policies will be funded or cut. These decisions could have beneficial or detrimental effects on Black communities. For example, Vivek Ramaswamy, Trump’s pick to co-lead his advisory government spending commission, claims he’d eliminate waste from SNAP when Trump takes office, Newsweek reported.
Aware of the political climate, folks like Bellfield El-Amin, are still optimistic.
“There’s still some good people sitting in seats. They’re still going to be there, and I have faith that it’s still going to run the way it’s going to run,” she said. “There may not be as much racial stuff … but you still have all these other programs that come out of USDA that are locked in for three to five years, regardless of who the president is. That’s what I’m going to keep on reiterating to folks.”
What’s in this year’s farm bill?

Due to the USDA’s history of discrimination, the farm bill is the one opportunity for Congress to address existing barriers while prioritizing racial equity in its policies and programs. Without it, Black folks — who represent about 27% of SNAP beneficiaries — will struggle to keep food on the table, and possibly push more people into poverty. For farmers, it’ll make it more difficult to access resources to continue their operations. One critique from Black farmers is that the farm bill supports large-scale operations rather than small farms.
Some of the priorities in this year’s Senate and House versions include:
- allowing states to replace SNAP benefits stolen through EBT card skimming;
- lift the lifetime ban of people with felony drug convictions from qualifying for SNAP;
- creating an Office of Small Farmers to better assist small and family farms;
- continue to invest in high speed internet, rural economic development, and water infrastructure projects;
- expanding access to child care in rural areas, and
- supporting legal services to resolve heirs’ property issues.
Read More: One Mistake Led to a Lifetime Ban of SNAP Benefits. This Reform Rollback Can End It.
Rodney Brooks, the Beginning Farmer Regional Coordinator for the USDA’s Farm Service Agency and detailee to the House Agriculture Committee, mentioned other proposals introduced by Democrats include $8.8 billion in direct aid to farmers and a permanent increase in funding for conservation programs that pay farmers to use climate-smart strategies to combat the climate crisis.
“Time is of the essence, and it is our hope that minds can come together and pass a realistic, feasible solution to these problems, and get monies directly into the hands of farmers and ranchers to make sure that they stay on the farm,” Brooks told the crowd.
What do Black farmers need now?
It boils down to equity and access to funding. While the farm bill is a tool, the one-year extension won’t address the continued struggles of Black farmers.
Arkansas farmer John Lee questioned whether there will be an increase in operating loan amounts to offset expensive equipment.
“It’s just not enough money to help a farmer get to a level of farming that’s sustainable, which requires additional equipment, expenses, and travel. Nowadays, $450,000 possibly can buy a used tractor, $200,000 and upward, [a] good one,” Lee said. “I don’t know that the funding level is where it needs to be to have new and beginning farmers. … I think I need consideration for increasing the limit in addition to separating the equipment purchase from that operating loan.”

Kesha Cobb, founder and director of Black Women in Ag, shared how there’s “so much stonewalling” still happening with some of the agents in the county offices when trying to bring in new and beginning farmers.
“Some of the agents are lying to some of the farmers. ‘You can’t get a farm number. You have to wait 12 years.’ They’re telling some stories,” Cobb asked a panel of USDA officials. “What is the agency doing to combat what’s still happening? Some of these people are Black, white, Hispanic — it doesn’t matter. … They’re still marginalizing us. So what can we know that the agency is doing? And what do we have to do?”
Though more than $30 billion will be made available to farmers through the farm bill extension, without equity embedded within the USDA, or knowledge the funding exists, Black farmers will continue to face discrimination — and be left behind.
How will equity show up?
For decades, Black farmers have been on the decline.
It’s one of the reasons why the National Black Growers Council exists, said fifth-generation farmer PJ Haynie III from Virginia, who is also the president of the National Black Growers Council. The mission, he shared, is to improve the efficiency, productivity, and sustainability of black row-crop farmers. They host the annual meeting to provide a forum for Black farmers to ask questions of administrators and provide discussions on what resources exist to help.
“As we work together to advocate for this organization and for Black farmers, I would just like you to be mindful, and as you go back to your respective organizations and your agencies, just ask yourself, what can you do to help reverse that downward trend?” he asked the hundreds in attendance.
Part of the change must be diverse leadership — not just in the federal government but across agriculture and food spaces, said Basil Gooden, USDA undersecretary for Rural Development. In his agency, 40% of state directors are people of color and 60% are women, he said.
“As we move forward, the more women we can get in these halls of power — whether it’s in these big food corporations … getting good leadership that can speak to the values and the missions and people understand the communities that we serve, that’s the vision,” Gooden said. “As this new administration comes in, we’re certainly going to have to learn to work and to thrive. One thing about rural folks and black folks as well, they have thrived under whatever administration is in place, and so I don’t expect anything different.”
Dewayne Goldmon, senior advisor for racial equity to the secretary of agriculture, told the room of farmers they will have to elevate their voices more because the disparities that cause that discrimination are probably going to still be around.
“I heard how equity should be embedded in USDA, not just a priority of one administration, but deeply embedded so that the real work of this administration will persist far into the future … long after we’re gone,” Goldmon said. “We need to continue to hold whoever’s in charge. We need to continue to hold them accountable for making sure those recommendations make their way into the fabric of USDA.”

Institutions such as the Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers Policy Research Center at Alcorn State University will continue to hold lawmakers accountable. Additionally, the center is working with organizations like the USDA’s Farm Service Agency to facilitate heirs’ property training, said Eloris Speight, the center’s executive director. They are also continuing to conduct research studies in the areas of access to capital, food insecurities, and other things that support or hinder participation in USDA programs and the impact on Black farmers.
While the incoming administration, specifically Trump, opposes diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack encouraged diversity within the USDA, stating it’s “not something to be fearful of … but something to understand,” given USDA’s long-history with discriminating against Black farmers. It’s important to support the future of the industry, he said. He mentioned the agency’s commitment to it through its NextGen program, which supports colleges and universities, including 1890 land-grant institutions (HBCUs), to create a pipeline for students interested in entering the food and agriculture industry.
“There have been billions of dollars paid out in the form of either compensation for discrimination or financial assistance for those who experience discrimination. You can prevent billions of dollars being paid in those payments if you have a USDA that doesn’t discriminate. A USDA that basically treats everybody fairly,” he said. “Equity and diversity … is part of being a good business person and being a good government official.”
Through her organization, Bellfield El-Amin is focusing on building capacity and relationships with universities, nonprofits, and farm organizations across the country. She’ll attend more conferences while also preparing to host the Kentucky Black Farmers Association annual conference in March. It’s also having conversations with state leaders in Kentucky about their policy agendas and how to better serve Black farmers.
“I really want to make sure that they understand the state of the Black farmer here, and then we talk about some of our successes,” she said. “Since y’all don’t know that we exist, let me tell you about what we are doing good. But, also, these are things that could be done better.”
The post Can the Farm Bill Bridge the Gap for Black Farmers? appeared first on Capital B News.