A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on USDA farm program payments shows that while USDA has improved its compliance reviews on eligibility for farm program payments, more oversight is still needed.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, long backing tightening farm program payment rules to make sure those dollars go only to producers that have “dirt under their nails,” requested the review and said it shows that there needs to be more done on that front.
“Congress must fix this broken system in the next Farm Bill,” Grassley said. “I look forward to continuing to work with the USDA as they address much-needed changes to FSA office operations to implement these recommendations.”
GAO said that the issues are focused mostly on state FSA offices, pointing out that there no systematic monitoring of performance compliance reviews. The report said that 19 of the top 20 farms that received payments in 2016 and 2017 are in the south. GAO made an additional five recommendations for USDA and FSA to implement so that only those actively engaged in farming are utilizing the payments and the program is used for its original purpose.
This will keep the matter as an issue as the next farm bill is developed, with that process expected to get underway in 2021.