Conservative farm policy, explained
Farm policy explained with a conservative perspective: taxes, the safety net, regulation and markets. We show what supporters argue and what critics say.
Amarillo, TXindependent policy commentary site with a conservative perspective100 articles
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The Working Families Tax Cuts Act: What It Means for Your Farm’s Bottom Line
See how a federal tax law like the Working Families Tax Cuts Act flows through a farm return, and what to ask your…
Safety Net and Farm Bill$13.8 Billion in ARC and PLC Payments: Who Gets What in 2026
Learn how ARC and PLC payments are calculated, who is eligible, and how to check your own farm’s numbers with FSA…
Tax Policy and Estate PlanningThe Death Tax Is Gone (Permanently): A New Era for Family Farm Succession
Estate tax rules are only one piece of passing on a farm. Learn what the headline means, what it leaves out, and which…
Safety Net and Farm BillHow the GOP Farm Bill Draft Aims to Fix Proposition 12
A plain explainer on Proposition 12, why the farm bill draft addresses it, what supporters and critics argue, and what…
Rural Economy and WorkforceThe Conservative Case for a Stronger Farm Safety Net
Why some conservatives argue for a stronger farm safety net, what the counter-arguments are, and how to judge any…
Tax Policy and Estate Planning
The Working Families Tax Cuts Act: What It Means for Your Farm’s Bottom Line
See how a federal tax law like the Working Families Tax Cuts Act flows through a farm return, and what to ask your…
Tax Policy and Estate PlanningThe Death Tax Is Gone (Permanently): A New Era for Family Farm Succession
Estate tax rules are only one piece of passing on a farm. Learn what the headline means, what it leaves out, and which…
Tax Policy and Estate PlanningThe 20% Small Business Deduction: A Permanent Win for Agribusiness
How a 20% qualified business income style deduction works for farms and agribusiness, who may qualify, and the…
Tax Policy and Estate PlanningHow the GOP Tax Cuts Are Reshaping Farm Investment Decisions
How tax rules shape farm investment in land, machinery and buildings, what supporters and critics argue about it, and…
Safety Net and Farm Bill
$13.8 Billion in ARC and PLC Payments: Who Gets What in 2026
Learn how ARC and PLC payments are calculated, who is eligible, and how to check your own farm’s numbers with FSA…
Safety Net and Farm BillHow the GOP Farm Bill Draft Aims to Fix Proposition 12
A plain explainer on Proposition 12, why the farm bill draft addresses it, what supporters and critics argue, and what…
Safety Net and Farm BillWhy Republicans Say the Farm Bill Is About National Security
Understand the national security argument for the farm bill, what supporters claim, where critics push back, and how…
Safety Net and Farm BillThe Grassley Blueprint: How Iowa’s Senior Senator Shaped the 2026 Farm Safety Net
What a senator’s blueprint for the farm safety net can mean, how payment limits and program design fit in, and how to…
Trade and Markets
Inside the House Ag Committee’s Draft: The Farm, Food, and National Security Act
A reader’s guide to the House Agriculture Committee’s farm bill draft: how a draft becomes law, what to look for in…
Trade and MarketsHow the GOP Is Courting the Next Generation of Farmers
What beginning farmer policies Republicans emphasize, what critics say they miss, and practical steps young Texas…
Trade and MarketsThe Republican Approach to Trade: Tariffs, Deals, and the Farm Economy
How tariffs and trade deals affect farm markets, what supporters and critics of the Republican approach say, and how…
Trade and MarketsThe Republican Case for a Smaller, More Targeted USDA
Why some Republicans want a smaller, more targeted USDA, what supporters say it would save, and what farmers should…
Regulation and Property Rights
Section 179 Expensing: How Farmers Can Write Off Equipment and Land Improvements
How Section 179 expensing works for farm equipment and certain improvements, what limits to check, and how to avoid…
Regulation and Property RightsDeferring Capital Gains When Selling Farmland to a Family Member
How selling farmland to a family member can defer or spread capital gains, from installment sales to basis, plus the…
Regulation and Property RightsThe Republican Plan to Streamline USDA Regulations
What streamlining USDA regulations could mean for farms, what supporters and critics argue, and how to track rules and…
Regulation and Property RightsHow the GOP Is Working to Expand Meat Processing Capacity
How Republicans say they would expand meat processing capacity, what small plants face, and what ranchers should ask…
Rural Economy and Workforce
The Conservative Case for a Stronger Farm Safety Net
Why some conservatives argue for a stronger farm safety net, what the counter-arguments are, and how to judge any…
Rural Economy and WorkforceWhy Rural Voters Are Souring on the GOP (and What the Party Is Doing About It)
What farm and rural frustrations people point to, how to read sentiment surveys, and what supporters and critics say…
Rural Economy and WorkforceThe Republican Plan to Expand Broadband Access in Rural America
How rural broadband funding works, what supporters and critics say about the Republican approach, and how farms can…
Rural Economy and WorkforceThe Conservative Argument for Conservation Programs
Why some conservatives support voluntary farm conservation programs, what critics say, and how Panhandle producers can…
Credit and Inputs
The $15 Billion Pre-Midterm Promise: Politics or Policy?
How to judge a large farm aid promise: where the money comes from, how payments are decided, and what supporters and…
Credit and InputsThe GOP’s Vision for the Future of Biofuels and Year-Round E15
What Republicans argue about biofuels and year-round E15, how corn and sorghum growers could be affected, and what to…
Credit and InputsWhy Republicans Say the “Farmer Freedom Framework” Will End Agricultural Lawfare
What Republicans mean by agricultural lawfare, how the Farmer Freedom Framework is described by supporters, and what…
Credit and InputsThe Republican Plan to Protect Family Farms from Foreign Ownership
What Republicans argue about foreign ownership of farmland, how disclosure and state laws work in general, and what…
Trusted official resources
- USDA: U.S. Department of Agriculture
- USDA Economic Research Service: farm economy data and analysis
- USDA NASS: agricultural statistics and surveys
- Farmers.gov: USDA one-stop site for producers
- Texas Department of Agriculture: state agriculture agency
- Texas Department of Banking: state bank regulator
- Texas Comptroller: state tax and economic data
From farm.FM
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