Whether it’s $30 billion, $60 billion or $100 billion, slashing the federal budget means cutting back on a lot of programs. But farm subsidies are not facing the axe, and having nearly two dozen lawmakers receiving such financial support may have something to do with it.

 

The Environmental Working Group has determined that at least 23 representatives and senators, or their family members, applied for farm subsidy payments between 1995 and 2009. Seventeen were Republicans and six belonged to the Democratic Party, with the GOP taking in more than $5.3 million, compared to only $489,856 for Democrats.

 

The biggest beneficiaries of farm subsidies in the current Congress have been:

·       Rep. Stephen Fincher (R-Tennessee) $3,368,843

·       Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Missouri) $469,292

·       Rep. Kristi Noem (R-South Dakota) $443,748

·       Sen. John Tester (D-Montana) $442,303

·       Rep. Tom Latham (R-Iowa) $330,046

Fincher, Hartzler, Noem and Tester are all first-term members of Congress.

 

Five crops— corn, cotton, rice, wheat and soybeans—account for 90% of the government’s farm subsidies and 74% of subsidies go to the top 10% of farms. According to the Department of Agriculture, 62% of U.S. farmers don’t receive any direct federal payments.

-David Wallechinsky, Noel Brinkerhoff

 

Cut Spending – But Not My Farm Subsidies! (by Chris Campbell, Amber Hanna and Don Carr, Environmental Working Group)

Top Recipients of Farm Subsidies 1995-2009 (Environmental Working Group)

Large Corporate Farms Still Get Bulk of Federal Subsidies (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)

Half of USDA Farm Subsidy Dollars Go to Just 4% of Farms (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)