The Senate Agriculture Committee on Thursday recessed after working on the farm bill markup for over three hours and hitting a stalemate with Democrats demanding that Republicans delay a requirement that states share the cost of providing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits by two years, rejecting a one year delay compromise.

“We’re holding hostage the people that were charged to help,” said Committee Chairman Chairman John Boozman (R-AR). “This is not about SNAP recipients. This is about the states with very, very high error rates. We’re holding hostage our farm community. And when you take livestock out of it, this is one of the poorest industries right now in America. And it’s not just farmers and ranchers. It’s rural America. And so we’re charged to help them. And right now we’re not able to do that because of this.”

Sen. Boozman chose to recess the committee rather than adjourn and come back in September to reconsider. Ranking member Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) issued a statement that she is committed to continuing to work with Chairman Boozman to get the bill done. “There are good things in it for our farmers and ranchers, including year-round E-15, a provision I have long led on,” said Klobuchar. “Our members are simply asking for the two-year delay (on the SNAP requirement) so all states will be on the same footing in working to reduce their error rates.”

Sen. Chuck Grassley expressed his frustration at the lack of bipartisanship on the agriculture committee. “I’ve been on the Agriculture Committee since way back 1992. During that time, I’ve participated in seven different five-year farm bills. All of them were very bipartisan. It’s a shame that Democrats will not join us in the bill this year,” said Grassley. Instead, the Democrats on the committee are using our farmers as a sacrificial lamb in an attempt to score political points.”

Agricultural organizations were unanimously disappointed in the failure of the committee to advance the farm bill.

“We urge senators to return to the table, work across party lines, and advance a farm bill out of committee in order to continue the negotiations toward a bipartisan farm bill that provides the long-term support and certainty our farmers, ranchers and rural communities need. The reality is that this might be our last chance this year to get it done. The stakes are too high to allow the opportunity to slip away,” said American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall.

Listen to comments from Boozman and Grassley below:
Senate ag farm bill markup - Boozman 1:45

Senate ag farm bill markup - Grassley 1:52