A ‘Big, Beautiful’ win for Illinois farmers

In Illinois and across the country, farming is more than just an industry — it’s a way of life that supports our families and is the heartbeat of rural communities.

After years of rising input costs and volatile markets, Illinois farmers finally have updated farm policy that reflects their needs in the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” landmark legislation that delivers real, meaningful wins for Illinois farmers.

The “One Big Beautiful Bill” represents the largest investment in American agriculture in a generation and contains sweeping reforms that protect Illinois family farms, restore accountability to social safety net programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and deliver long-overdue tax relief to rural communities.

It was beyond time for farm policy updates that can keep pace with the current cost of doing business and provide long-term certainty for farmers facing weather and market volatility.

Significant updates to the Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage programs are expected to provide $2.6 billion more in risk protection to Illinois farmers over the next 10 years.

This enhanced safety net ensures producers can better weather price fluctuations and unpredictable markets, providing greater stability on the farm.

To further bolster risk management options for producers, the bill increases the payment limitations for commodities programs from $125,000 to $155,000 and indexes them to inflation moving forward to ensure producers have a meaningful safety net that better matches their cost of production.

One of the biggest wins in the bill for Illinois growers is the projected addition of over 1.8 million new base acres. This means more farmers can tap into the safety net, bringing crucial support and long-term stability to producers of all sizes.

Crop insurance remains a vital safety net for many farmers, particularly in Illinois. It was important to Congress to not only maintain the protection crop insurance provides against natural disasters and market volatility, but also strengthen the effectiveness of the program.

This bill builds on the success of the federal crop insurance program by expanding coverage for area-wide endorsements like the Supplemental Coverage Option, as well as increasing premium subsidies across all coverage levels.

These updates make crop insurance more affordable, saving Illinois farmers nearly $367 million in premiums over the next decade.

The bill helps specialty crop producers by allocating more than $1.1 billion for specialty crop research and block grant funding to help foster innovation and give these farmers the opportunity to grow and diversify their operations. This is especially important for specialty crop producers in Illinois, who generate over $590 million annually.

Livestock producers are supported through a $1.6 billion investment in livestock biosecurity which will help prevent and control diseases like African swine fever, avian influenza and New World screwworm, protect animal health, and secure our food supply.

Illinois producers will also receive up to $29 million more annually through voluntary conservation programs such as the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, Agricultural Conservation Easement Program, Regional Conservation Partnership Program and Conservation Stewardship Program.

These investments protect our soil, water and wildlife habitat, ensuring our land remains productive and sustainable for generations to come.

Trade promotion is another cornerstone of the bill. Illinois exports over $10.6 billion worth of agricultural products each year, and the “One Big Beautiful Bill” doubles funding for trade promotion programs, which historically have generated $24 in exports for every dollar spent.

This boost empowers our farmers to compete globally, opening new markets and strengthening our rural economies.

The bill also includes an important update for farms structured as pass-through entities, such as limited-liability companies and S corporations, which are structured for sound tax, risk management and generational transfer reasons.

This update allows producers to organize their operations based on legal and financial considerations rather than outdated program restrictions.

Finally, the bill maintains the important elimination of the “death tax” for more than 66,000 family farms in Illinois.

This protection ensures family-owned farms can stay in the family for generations to come without the threat of crippling estate taxes that could force the sale of land or assets.

Together, these provisions demonstrate a commitment to putting farmers first and reflect over two years of work.

Delivering stronger risk management tools, increasing conservation resources and improving market access are all critical tools needed to preserve family farms.

We fought hard to ensure this bill reflects the needs of the producers who feed our nation and the world every day.

Although agriculture is resilient, it is not immune to challenges. With the passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” our producers are better equipped than ever to meet those challenges head-on.

Glenn “GT” Thompson, of Pennsylvania, is the chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, which includes fellow Republican members Mike Bost and Mary Miller, representing Illinois’ 12th and 15th congressional districts, respectively.