Proposed agriculture funding bill impacts more than 80,000 Native producers

The provisions shape access to credit, risk management tools and conservation programs, Kari Jo Lawrence, co-chair of the coalition and CEO of the Intertribal Agriculture Council, told Buffalo’s Fire in an email. Lawrence, a citizen of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation, grew up on a cattle ranch and now lives and works on a ranch on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation.

“For me, federal agricultural policy has on-the-ground implications,” she said. “It makes a difference in how Indian producers continue fulfilling our role as caretakers of natural resources. Effective policy supports both economic stability and cultural responsibility.”

The last Farm Bill was signed into law December 2018. Though typically updated every five years, the 2018 bill was left to expire in September 2023. Congress reauthorized it later that year and in 2025.

Committee Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson posted an op-ed to the committee’s website days before the 2026 draft was made public, saying farmers needed a new farm bill — immediately.

“Whether in my office or out in the field, I’ve heard from a producer of every single commodity, crop, or livestock over the years,” he wrote. “The only thing every producer has in common is that they all ask for a new farm bill.”

More than 80,000 Native producers contribute $3.5 billion annually to the agriculture industry, according to the Native Farm Bill Coalition. But tribes have largely been left out of past Farm Bills. So the coalition formed in 2017 to lobby on behalf of these producers and tribal governments.

“Approximately 44 million acres of the 56 million-plus acres that are Indian Country are categorized as agricultural lands outside the scope of state jurisdiction,” said the Intertribal Agriculture Council in an email statement to Buffalo’s Fire. “If a state is mentioned, Tribes should also be mentioned in Farm Bill provisions that cover local government participation in programming.”

Tribal sovereignty, the coalition’s report says, cannot be attained without food sovereignty.

The coalition flagged 63 provisions that mention tribes or are relevant to them in their February summary.

IAC said it was encouraged to see that the 2026 Farm Bill draft mentions tribes in the Local Farmers Feeding Our Communities Program, which connects local producers with local and regional food distribution systems. The draft sets aside 10% of the program’s funding for tribes.

The State Assistance for Soil Health, a new program, also sets aside additional funding. It will supplement 75% of the cost for tribal soil health programs, up to $5 million per year, compared to 50% for states.

However, the draft does not include tribes in funding for agriculture mediation programs, which help farmers and ranchers secure credit and resolve disputes, including financial and land disputes. And tribes are not included as eligible entities to provide technical assistance for conservation planning.

Conservation and soil health programs allow farmers and ranchers to invest in their land, said Lawrence.

“Sound land management practices,” she said, “contribute to better water quality in the streams and rivers that serve not only our operation but surrounding communities as well.”

And while the draft does reauthorize funding and makes some updates to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, it doesn’t address impending cuts that will go into effect later this year. Nearly 42 million Americans rely on SNAP, including a higher than average percentage in North Dakota tribal communities.

Last summer, the One Beautiful Bill Act reduced SNAP funding, slashing $187 billion — 20% — from the program, according to the Legal Defense Fund. And stricter work regulations, the fund says, will cut SNAP benefits for an estimated 2.4 million people.

The government shutdown in November halted federal funding for food assistance, leaving tribes and states to provide funding or risk SNAP recipients going hungry. Food banks and tribal organizations mobilized to compensate.

While the draft does not expand SNAP funding, it extends the Food Distribution on Indian Reservations through 2031.

The House Agriculture Committee will hold a markup hearing for the proposed 2026 Farm Bill on March 3.