The Senate Ag Committee will consider a newly revised Farm Bill today, with the latest version released last Friday by Senate Ag Chair John Boozman (R-Ark).
What’s new
A one-year delay before states must share the cost of providing SNAP benefits
Allowance of year-round, voluntary sales of E15
Possible impacts to conservation
EQIP: The bill has a nearly $2 billion cut to the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), which provides cost share and technical assistance to help farmers with conservation practices.
Why it matters: EQIP is in such high demand by farmers that only 24% of 118,000 applications were funded in FY2025. Said another way, three out of four farmers were turned away.
If passed, 56,500 farmers already approved for assistance will not receive it, according to University of Illinois estimates.
It’s unclear if the EQIP cuts would directly impact NRCS staffing.
CRP: The bill would continue the popular Conservation Reserve Program through 2031 and maintain the 27-million-acre cap. USDA reported 26.2 million acres enrolled in April 2026.
What’s next: The Senate Ag Committee will take on the draft today. The current (extended) Farm Bill is set to expire on Sept 30, 2026.
State of Play: The last Farm Bill to be enacted was 2018. It's been extended three times because lawmakers haven’t been able to agree on a new version.
But the creators of a new crop insurance pilot believe soil health is reliable enough to lower crop insurance premiums for farmers. And they’re working to prove that theory in a new pilot program.
What it is: The NextGen Crop Insurance Pilot is a private insurance add-on that farmers can use to get rewarded for soil health practices.
Why it matters: Farmers say crop insurance can be a barrier to adopting advanced soil health practices because rates focus on historical production records, not the future.
In today’s federal crop insurance system, if a farmer changes practices to improve soil health, but they’re not recognized by crop insurance, it can cause financial gaps.
How it works:
Participating farmers pay a $35 membership fee.
It gets them into a private risk pool with other farmers who might have lower risk.
If losses are reduced over time, financial benefits could be returned to growers through dividends.
Meanwhile, program leaders will be capturing actuarial data to better understand risk.
Zooming in: The program is focused only on four counties in the Michigan “thumb” for now.
Zooming out: Program leaders hope the pilot could eventually scale beyond the state.
They’re hoping for results in other parts of farm finance, too. If soil health reduces risk, it could positively impact operating loans and even land valuation.
The University of Iowa is building an AI model that will forecast nitrate fluctuations to help downstream utilities prepare.
How it works: The AI model will look for patterns between nitrate levels and natural variables, by looking at data from:
NASA Earth Observations, including soil moisture conditions, vegetation, and atmospheric conditions
Data from 60 water monitoring sensors, including nitrate levels, pH, and temperature
Why it matters: Utilities directors say it can sometimes be difficult to predict nitrate levels in surface water because so many variables impact nitrate. A seven-day outlook could help them plan.
Zooming in: The project is currently focused on three utilities: Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, and Des Moines Waterworks
NASA is providing funding and the University of Iowa’s Hydro Science and Engineering unit is leading the research.
The bigger picture: The project lead says he hopes it could expand to all of Iowa’s public water supply systems.
Conservation groups and hunters are concerned because the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has opened a public comment period on a rule related to prairie pothole wetlands.
USFWS says it’s just seeking input.
But hunting groups are worried about potential changes that could put thousands of wetlands at risk.
Wait, a pothole isn’t a road issue?
Yes, but we’re talking about prairie potholes, which are small shallow depressions that fill with water seasonally. Central Iowa’s Des Moines Lobe has many of these.
The context: Since the 1960’s, USFWS has paid landowners (largely farms) to put small pothole wetlands in easements.
In an easement, the landowner still owns it, but they agree not to drain, fill, level, or burn the area.
Funding has come mostly from the Federal Duck Stamp – a fee that hunters must pay to hunt waterfowl.
The rule in question:In 2024, USFWS established “setbacks” – the minimum distance farmers must keep new drainage away from a wetland easement.
Why? Tile too close to a wetland can end up draining it, even if the easement itself remains untouched.
Why it matters: The Prairie Pothole Region and its wetlands are critical breeding habitat for ducks, often referred to as the "duck factory".
By the numbers: There are more than 28,000 wetland easements spanning 1.5 million acres that are impacted by the rule in question.
State of play: No proposals are currently on the table, but Ducks Unlimited issued an action alert to its members this week, urging members to get ahead of any risk.
The Bean Scene: Rewriting Iowa’s water quality story
In Iowa Soybean’s new podcast, “The Bean Scene,” host Maxwell Schaeffer talks to Des Moines Water Works, Central Iowa Water Works, IAWA, and a NW Iowa farmer to get multiple perspectives on water quality. “We have such an opportunity to rewrite Iowa’s story,” said Tami Madsen, Executive Director of CIWW. Listen on Iowa Soybean’s website, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Researchers say farmers want to grow more than corn and soybeans. A new report has some ideas
Focus groups and surveys found that Midwest farmers are interested in diversifying their rotations to include more than corn and soybeans, but they don’t see it as economically viable. The report points to solutions including changes in crop insurance, Farm Bill, infrastructure, and markets. Read more in Iowa Public Radio.
Why food companies are exploring regenerative agriculture
Global ag and the food supply chain account for almost a third of total greenhouse gas emissions. Meanwhile, farm resiliency is becoming increasingly important for ingredient availability. This article looks at efforts by Pepsico, Unilever, Nestle, and others to tap into regen ag. Read more on CNN.
Linn County OKs $100k for UI water sensors
The Linn Co. Board of Conservation approved $100k for the University of Iowa’s water real-time monitoring system, IWQIS. The university lost legislative funding in 2023 and has been running on donations and private grants ever since. IWQIS has 70 river sensors statewide. Read more in The Gazette.
Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance, 1255 SW Prairie Trail Pkwy, Ankeny, Iowa 50023, United States
