On December 8, 2025, President Trump announced the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) will have $12 billion on hand to provide support to American farmers with one-time bridge payments. This relief is a counter to increased production costs and trade market disruptions that are impacting farmers. The bridge payments are to aid farmers until the investments, such as reference prices for ARC and PLC payments set to increase 10-21% for major commodities, from the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBBA) in 2026.
Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) Program Overview
$11 billion will be used through the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) program to provide relief to row crop farmers. FBA will aid in offsetting inflated input costs, market disruptions, and market losses from foreign trade. The following row crops are eligible for FBA: barley, canola, chickpeas, corn, cotton, flax, lentils, mustard, oats, peanuts, peas, rapeseed, rice, safflower, sesame, sorghum, soybeans, sunflower, and wheat.
The calculation to determine FBA support is a uniform formula covering a portion of the national loss average during the 2025 crop year. The national loss average will be based on planted acres reported by the Farm Service (FSA), cost of production from Economic Research Service, and yields, prices, and economic modeling from the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report. Farmers should confirm their 2025 acreage reporting is accurate and up to date by 5 pm ET on December 19, 2025. Rates for commodities will be released by the end of the month. FBA expects to send payments out to eligible farmers by the end of February 2026.
Support for Specialty Crops and Sugar Producers
The remaining $1 billion in bridge payments will be reserved for specialty crops and sugar not covered in the FBA program. There are no further details about when these payments will go out and additional information is needed at this time.
Why this Matters
This aid is a step forward in helping American farmers battle inflation and a stagnant market. As additional details on FBA payments and specialty crop assistance become available, it is important to stay informed to ensure you’re positioned to take advantage of available relief.
The HoganTaylor Tax Practice
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INFORMATIONAL PURPOSE ONLY. This content is for informational purposes only. This content does not constitute professional advice and should not be relied upon by you or any third party, including to operate or promote your business, secure financing or capital in any form, obtain any regulatory or governmental approvals, or otherwise be used in connection with procuring services or other benefits from any entity. Before making any decision or taking any action, you should consult with professional advisors.
