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The $38bn (€33.8bn) cut in farm supports that include new limits on crop insurance premiums and caps for commodity payments has united a wide group of farm groups and insurance providers in opposition to the scale of the cuts.
Mick Mulvaney, director of the Office of Management and Budget, said that lawmakers would need to make changes in the next farm bill legislation.
USDA (US Department of Agriculture) would also see significant cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Additionally, the proposed budget could charge user fees totalling $660m (€587.4m) annually to help pay for USDA inspections at meat and poultry plants.
Statement
The insurance group representing that industry issued a joint statement.
"Weakening crop insurance and making it more difficult for farmers to bounce back during tough times will jeopardize rural jobs and will find little support in rural America or on Capitol Hill.
"The rural economy is already suffering through a period of low prices and a multitude of spring weather disasters. Yet the administration’s budget proposals target the primary tool farmers use to handle these risks.”
The groups also said that proposed cuts to insurance by prior administrations were unpopular and “soundly rejected” by Congress.
Agriculture secretary Sonny Perdue held a press conference in which he reiterated that he’s dealt with budgets he hasn’t liked before.
Trump’s proposed budget would take a 21% bite out of UDSA’s entire budget, which tallies up to $46.54bn (€41.42bn) over the next 10 years.
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