Senate Agriculture Committee Fails to Advance Farm Bill on 10-11 Vote

WASHINGTON, The Senate Agriculture Committee failed Thursday to advance the Agricultural Act of 2026 out of markup, leaving the long-delayed farm bill stalled in committee until Congress returns from its August recess.

The final vote was 10-11, according to reporting by the American Ag Network and DTN. The motion needed a majority to pass. It didn't get one.

Chairman John Boozman, R-Ark., released revised legislative text just days before the Aug. 6 session. The updated bill, known informally as Farm Bill 2.0, included new language authorizing permanent year-round sales of E15 fuel and a provision extending the timeline for states to comply with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program cost-sharing requirements first imposed under last year's reconciliation law.

Boozman had pitched the bill as a bipartisan product. "Members on both sides of the aisle will find their priorities reflected in this bill," he said in a statement released by the Senate Agriculture Committee. It responded, he added, "to concerns that states need additional time to strengthen administration of SNAP benefits."

Democrats weren't persuaded. According to DTN, disagreements over SNAP kept members voting with their parties through most of the markup, with Republicans winning most individual amendment votes 12-11. But two Republican absences killed the bill at the final stage.

Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., cast his vote by proxy while recovering from a fall. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., left the session before the final committee vote, according to DTN. If Tuberville had been present, the tally would have been 11-11, still a failure.

The sticking point was the SNAP cost-shift. Under the reconciliation package passed last year, states will for the first time be required to cover a share of SNAP benefit costs that previously fell entirely to the federal government. Advocacy groups estimate that more than 4 million people, roughly 10 percent of all SNAP beneficiaries, have already lost benefits under the existing law. The National Association of Counties reported that the committee did adopt several amendments during the session, including expanding SNAP eligibility to hot rotisserie chicken, permanently transferring the Food for Peace program to the Agriculture Department, and reinstating mandatory country-of-origin labeling for beef.

But those wins weren't enough to move the bill. Democrats held out for a two-year delay of the cost-shift. Republicans did not offer that.

Boozman can call the committee back into session. He's expected to do so in September, after the Senate returns from recess, according to reporting by the American Ag Network.

The House passed its own version of the farm bill, the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026, in late April. The two chambers would need to reconcile differences in a conference committee before either bill could reach the president's desk.

Congress hasn't passed a new farm bill since 2018. Stopgap extensions have kept existing programs alive, but agricultural groups have pushed for a full reauthorization. The American Soybean Association said it was "deeply disappointed" by Thursday's outcome and urged lawmakers to use the recess to negotiate.

Sources cited:
- American Ag Network (https://www.americanagnetwork.com/2026/08/07/senate-ag-committee-fails-to-advance-farm-bill-over-snap-dispute/)
- DTN, Senate Farm Bill Markup Fails Committee Vote Over SNAP (https://www.dtnpf.com/agriculture/web/ag/news/article/2026/08/06/senate-farm-bill-markup-fails-vote)
- National Association of Counties (https://www.naco.org/news/senate-agriculture-committee-holds-farm-bill-markup-remains-committee)
- Senate Agriculture Committee, Chairman Boozman statement (https://www.agriculture.senate.gov/newsroom/rep/press/release/chairman-boozman-releases-updated-farm-bill-20-text-announces-business-meeting)