This week, PIA National signed onto letters sent to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and the House and Senate Budget Committees, urging them to protect crop insurance during budget negotiations. The letter, which has over 50 signatories representing insurance and agriculture organizations, discusses how the 2018 Farm Bill emphasizes the importance of crop insurance as a risk management tool for farmers and ranchers. You can find text of the letters here and here.
Though President Trump has yet to release his budget proposal for fiscal year 2020, he is expected to once again propose cuts to crop insurance. President Trump’s FY 2019 budget proposal included steep cuts to crop insurance. These cuts would have amounted to over $26 billion over the next ten years and would have come in the form of a reduction in premium subsidies for crop insurance, a reduction in underwriting gains to insurance companies, and an Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) limit of $500,000.
None of these cuts were enacted through the budget and appropriations process nor were they enacted through the 2018 Farm Bill, but crop insurance is constantly under attack.
In addition to signing on to crop insurance coalition letters to Secretary Perdue and to the House and Senate Budget Committees, PIA National has been actively advocating against cuts to crop insurance and for the important role that independent insurance agents play in the delivery of the federal crop insurance program.
Protecting the crop insurance program will be a top priority at the 2019 PIA Federal Legislative Summit on April 2nd and 3rd in Washington, DC. In addition, PIA National will continue its advocacy in support of crop insurance and the important role that independent agents play in the delivery of the federal crop insurance program throughout the year.
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