Farm Bill of 2008: Major Provisions & Legislative Action

Roughly every five years, Congress debates legislation governing federal farm and food policy. The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (also known as the Farm Bill ) was enacted into law on June 18, 2008. It contains 15 titles covering support for commodity crops, horticulture and livestock production, conservation, nutrition, trade and food aid, agricultural research, farm credit, rural development, energy, forestry and other related programs. The enacted bill succeeds the most recent 2002 Farm Bill and is to guide most federal farm and food policies through 2012. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates the total cost of the 2008 farm bill at just under $284 billion in total budget authority over five years. This book is a study of the new Farm Bill and its costs, provisions by title, programs and related topics.