Good afternoon,

In case you missed the big news last week, Congress released drafts of the 2024 Farm Bill. That's right, drafts, plural. Historically, the Farm Bill has garnered bipartisan support to fund its variety of titles and programs. Recent rifts over conservation and nutrition assistance, however, have divided lawmakers – and today, we have two very different drafts from the Senate and the House of Representatives.

House Republicans' version of the bill would cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by $30 billion over the next decade. This shortsighted cost-cutting endeavor is a failure of hardline conservatives to recognize the importance of investing in Americans' health and well-being – and a failure to understand the economic realities everyday Americans face.

The Senate's version, The Rural Prosperity And Food Security Act, contains over 100 different agricultural market bills from both sides of the aisle, making it a truly bipartisan bill – and the best path forward if a Farm Bill is going to pass in 2024.

Pandemic-era benefits – from enhanced food assistance programs to the child tax credit expansion and student loan payments pause – have now sunset. Groceries cost 33.5 percent more today than they did pre-pandemic, eating up a substantial portion of households' budgets. Despite a strong labor market and slowing inflation, working Americans are increasingly relying upon food banks and other forms of food assistance to put meals on the table.

Beyond OCP's priorities to encourage the Farm Bill to secure our farming foundation, provide the resources Americans need to continue living and working in rural regions, and open opportunities for rural economic growth, the Farm Bill must continue to support a robust nutrition assistance program that keeps families fed and healthy.

Here's what else you need to know this week...

MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH

• Not knowing when the next meal is coming puts families under a great deal of stress. Food insecurity is associated with an increased risk of mental illness, with individuals experiencing food insecurity 3.5 times more likely to report symptoms of anxiety and depression than those who are food secure.

• Other stressors come from the other end of the food system – many farmers, under the pressure of keeping operations running, operating themselves under a "frontier mindset," and facing stigma, lack access to mental health care.

• Too few mental health providers in rural regions exacerbate the issue: when individuals need help, there's not always someone to turn to – and telehealth, in areas without reliable internet access, can't always fill the need.

• Read OCP founder and former U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp's blog post about solutions that can help close gaps in mental health care – and listen to the Hot Dish Podcast about reducing stigma surrounding mental health care and how Lisa and Bill Bright of the Will Bright Foundation are creating support systems for rural residents dealing with addiction and substance abuse.

RURAL PROGRESS SUMMIT

• OCP is gathering thought leaders to discuss the matter of the Farm Bill, rural health care, and more at our 2024 Rural Progress Summit. On Tuesday, June 4 through Thursday, June 6, OCP board members, state and federal policymakers, and rural stakeholders will be discussing the current state of rural affairs and solutions that broaden rural Americans' access to everything from paid family leave to broadband to economic opportunity.

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