By JIM RUTLEDGE

D.C. Correspondent

MIFFINTOWN, Pa. — In a meeting with farmers last week, USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue hinted at possible new rules in the 2018 farm bill of work requirements for some of the 45.6 million Americans who use Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.

“It’s evident that there are able-bodied adults without dependents who are on the food stamp program, who we believe it is in their best interests, and their families’ best interest, to move into an independent lifestyle,” Perdue said in his first series of several planned trips across the nation’s farmlands.

Over the coming weeks, the USDA is planning a number of meetings with farmers and community leaders to introduce the agency’s “Farm Bill and Legislative Principles for 2018,“ part of an effort promoting a wide range of initiatives in the next farm bill spanning 2018-22.

“We have to figure out ways to feed the poorest in our society more productively and help them learn to transition into an independent lifestyle,” he told a meeting of Pennsylvania dairy farmers on Jan. 25.

SNAP benefits are distributed to needy recipients in the government’s $100 billion-plus program

Attaching work requirements for food stamps has always been a contentious issue among both Republican and Democrat lawmakers in the past, and the White House’s deep proposed cuts to the USDA budget this year has already started to show signs of a legislative battle ahead. This year’s budget has yet to be approved.

The food assistance program makes up the largest piece of the farm bill legislation, which is due to be renewed beginning Oct. l. Some $489 billion was budgeted in the 2014-18 farm bill.

In his address to farmers and ranchers at Reinfold Farms, Perdue said, “Since my first day as secretary, I’ve traveled to 30 states, listening to the people of American agriculture about what is working and what is not. The conversations we had and the people we came across helped us craft USDA’s Farm Bill and Legislative Principles for 2018.

“These principles will be used as a road map – they are our way of letting Congress know what we’ve heard from the hard-working men and women of American agriculture.” A four-page USDA document released ahead of his trip last week lists 42 legislative objectives that will make up the core objectives of the farm legislation.

On Capitol Hill, the House Agriculture Committee has held 113 hearings and half a dozen listening sessions over the past three years as the committee drafts the new farm bill. “We recognize what’s a stake,” Committee Chair K. Michael Conaway (R-Texas) said. “We’re working on getting the policy right.”

The committee has established a special website to keep farmers and the public up to date on the legislation, at https://agriculture.house.gov/farmbill

In anticipation of Perdue’s community visits, the National Farmers Union (NFU) said, “Given the persistent and ongoing economic challenges in farming and rural economies, (the) NFU Is calling on Congress to increase funding for farm programs … and pass the legislation as soon as possible.

“American farmers are not only suffering from price pressure that has reduced net farm income by half over the last four years, but devastating wildfires, hurricanes and other national disasters continue to punish agricultural communities.”

Perdue’s legislative principles outline support for a strong farm safety net that includes federally subsidized crop insurance; voluntary land stewardship; reduced regulatory burden on new farm and food technology; an invigorated ag research program; expanded rural economic development aided by a widely connected high-speed Internet service; and a “fiscally responsible farm bill that reflects the administration’s budget goals.”

Zippy Duvall, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, said, “We are pleased the Secretary and his team have highlighted not just the importance of risk management on the farm, but also rural development, research and development, trade, conservation and nutrition.”

Last July, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) predicted farm and nutrition programs would cost about $822 billion over the next decade, $679 billion for SNAP and $143 billion for commodity subsidies, crop insurance, conservation and other agriculture programs. The White House is expected soon to announce its funding for the new farm bill.

In response to Perdue’s suggestion of new restrictions on food stamp recipients, Greg Fogel, policy director for the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, said he was “concerned by the suggestion of potentially disastrous changes to nutrition assistance programs.”

He added, “Any reduction to the SNAP program could seriously risk the timely passage of a new farm bill, which would face a heated Congressional debate. If we want an on-time farm bill that serves the needs of American farmers and family, Congress must seek to unite, not divide, the agricultural and anti-hungry coalitions.”

The USDA did not respond to numerous telephone and email inquiries about Perdue’s upcoming scheduled meetings with farmers. The agency lists an Information Hotline for inquiries at 202-720-2791.