Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002

The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (H.R. 2646), also known as the 2002 Farm Bill, was introduced by former Rep. and Chair of the House Agriculture Committee Larry Combest (R-Tex.) On July 26, 2001.

Bill summary
The Act addressed assistance to domestic agriculture, and would remain in force until 2007 when Congress was expected to discuss a new farm bill.

Subsidies
The legislation included nearly $80 billion in additional subsidies, an %80 raise from the previous farm bill. The bill's overall spending totaled over $170 billion.

Conservation
A number of legislators offered amendments attempting to switch some funds from subsidies to conservation. Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wis.) offered an amendment which would have shifted $19 billion from commodities to conservation. The amendment failed by a vote of 200-226. Rep Leonard Boswell (D-Iowa) offered an amendment to use $650 million of the allocated funds for renewable energy, though it failed as well.

Reconciling House and Senate bills
The Senate initially sought far more money for conservation and far less for subsidies than did the House. The bill's final version included $17.1 billion for conservation, a $360,000 subsidy cap per farm, and an expected cost of roughly $190 billion over ten years.

Controversy
Critics of the bill argued that it violated World Trade Organization (WTO) policy by offering excessive subsidies. Additionally, some critics argued that the subsidies provided an incentive for farmers to produce more, leading to overproduction and decreased prices. With the prospect of the 2004 election looming, some called the subsidies an effort to secure Farm Belt votes ahead of the election.

External resources

 * Full Text -- Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002