March 2, 2026
To: Members of the House Committee on Agriculture
From: Bryan Riley, Director, Free Trade Initiative, National Taxpayers Union
Re: NTU’s Views on March 3, 2026 Committee Markup
On behalf of National Taxpayers Union (NTU), the nation’s oldest taxpayer advocacy organization, we write to express our views on the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026, slated for consideration before the House Committee on Agriculture on March 3, 2026.
NTU commends the Committee’s previous efforts to reduce federal budget deficits. We endorse several modifications to the proposed Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 that would benefit taxpayers by building on these efforts.
Farm Support: There are many opportunities to target subsidies in a more cost-effective manner. NTU continues to support reforms initially proposed by the Trump Administration during President Trump’s first term in office, including trimming crop insurance subsidies and lowering the income cap for subsidy eligibility. NTU also endorses additional pro-taxpayer measures like the Assisting Family Farmers through Insurance Reform Measures (AFFIRM) Act, which would cap premium subsidies and apply work requirements to subsidy recipients. This Committee should also work to limit the payment of farm support to only those individuals who are actively engaged in farming. The Government Accountability Office has provided additional details on the budgetary benefits of such changes.
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): NTU supports the Enhanced Cybersecurity for SNAP Act. This bill would require the use of chip-enabled benefit cards to prevent cybertheft. The Department of Agriculture’s Inspector General reports that, in FY 2025 and FY 2026, fraud related to SNAP Electronic Benefits Transfers may total $233 million due to a failure to implement such security measures.
Trade-Related Measures. The proposed bill would more than double spending on trade promotion programs like the Market Access Program and the Foreign Market Development Program. Low-cost measures that would be more beneficial to farm exporters than these spending increases include the following:
Cutting tariffs on raw materials and inputs needed by U.S. agricultural producers.
Evaluating the impact of the Trump Administration’s tariff increases on market access for American farmers. Our trading partners cannot buy from us unless they are allowed to sell to us.
Requiring a vote of Congress before new tariffs that would affect farmers and ranchers can take effect.
NTU encourages the Agriculture Committee to view the markup of the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 as the first step to achieving pro-taxpayer reforms such as these. Should you have any questions about the recommendations in this memo, please do not hesitate to reach out to Bryan Riley at briley@ntu.org.