Sponsors
Introduced February 13, 2026 by Glenn Thompson · Last progress February 13, 2026
The bill directs substantial new support for farmers, rural broadband, conservation, and food‑system resilience while increasing federal spending, administrative complexity, and regulatory shifts that could favor larger actors and weaken some environmental, local, and procedural protections.
Millions of farmers and rural communities will get expanded conservation and restoration support (bigger CRP enrollment floor, increased RCPP and reforestation/nursery funding, forest easements, and regional agroforestry centers), improving land stewardship, habitat recovery, and long‑term farm resilience.
Producers gain substantially expanded financial and technical assistance (precision‑ag cost-share and loan access, lower barriers for beginning/owner‑operators, distressed‑loan refinancing, higher microloan caps, loan guarantees and program flexibility), making it easier to invest, survive shocks, and enter farming.
Rural residents and institutions will get much better broadband access and prioritized support for telemedicine, distance learning, and frontier connectivity via new, targeted funding and grants, improving service availability and digital inclusion in remote areas.
The bill substantially increases mandatory and discretionary federal spending across many programs (conservation, research, broadband, rural grants, food aid, etc.), raising taxpayer costs and the risk of higher deficits or crowding out other priorities if not fully offset.
Major environmental‑review rollbacks for fuels‑reduction and forest projects (large categorical exclusions, limits on ESA reconsultation) and expanded timber/road authorities risk harm to wildlife, habitat, Tribal interests, and long‑term ecosystem health in pursuit of faster treatments.
Shifting Food for Peace to USDA with procurement and ocean‑transport constraints and repeal of some statutory minimums could reduce flexibility, raise program costs, and slow or shrink the reach of emergency food assistance in crisis zones.
Based on analysis of 50 sections of legislative text.
Amends many USDA programs across conservation, disaster assistance, nutrition, food aid, rural broadband, forestry, research, and animal health—adding standards, deadlines, reporting, new advisory roles, and program authorities.
Updates and rewrites many agriculture, conservation, nutrition, rural development, research, forestry, and USDA program rules. It changes eligibility and timelines for tree-disaster and conservation programs, moves some international food-aid responsibilities to USDA, adds oversight and transparency requirements for nutrition guidance and SNAP staffing flexibility, creates new bodies and advisory roles (including a specialty-crop advisory committee and a USDA ombudsman), sets standards for precision agriculture and rural broadband priorities, revises forest-management authorities (including a categorical NEPA exclusion for certain fuel-reduction projects), strengthens animal health and veterinary programs, and adds reporting, certification, and procurement reforms across USDA programs.