Delta Waterfowl Welcomes Progress on a New U.S. Farm Bill

Proposed act maintains CRP program levels and funds important habitat for ducks

BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA — U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture Chairman G.T. Thompson released The Farm, Food and National Security Act of 2026, on Feb. 13. The Act is the current iteration of a Farm Bill before Congress and serves as a hopeful sign of progress toward passage of a new law. 

The previous Farm Bill was passed and signed into law in 2018. Farm Bills cover five years, but they can be extended. While efforts have been made to extend authorities and continue to invest in important programs for ducks and duck hunters, passage of a new Farm Bill is a priority.

“We appreciate the Chairman’s leadership in introducing The Farm, Food and National Security Act of 2026 and his commitment to hold a markup in the hope of advancing a bipartisan piece of legislation through the Committee and to the House Floor,” said John Devney, Delta’s chief policy officer.

Notable provisions in the Act include:

• A 27-million-acre cap for the Conservation Reserve Program and nearly identical policy language from the 2018 bill regarding program implementation.
• New inclusions for the repair, maintenance, management, and enhancement of Wetland Reserve Program easements.
• Continues with the provision that NRCS shall commit 10% of Environmental Quality Incentives Program for practices that benefit wildlife habitat.

The Voluntary Public Access/Habitat Incentive Program, which provides program funding to states to incentivize landowners who open their working lands to hunters and anglers, was funded at $70 million through the budget reconciliation process last year as part of the “One Big Beautiful Bill.”

Delta’s Working Wetlands program language, which was included in the 2018 Farm Bill, creates new incentives to work with farmers to conserve small prairie wetlands and incentivizes post-harvest flooding in Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, and California. This language is retained in the new House draft. Delta continues to work with leadership to see the benefits of Working Wetlands realize its full potential for ducks.

The Act is slated for markup in the House Committee on Agriculture on Feb. 23.

“We look forward to working with members of Congress through the remainder of the year to ensure that the Farm Bill continues to invest in the very programs that work well for producers on their land and achieving big benefits for ducks and duck hunters,” Devney said.

Delta Waterfowl is The Duck Hunters Organization, a leading conservation group founded in 1911 that uses science-based solutions to produce ducks, conserve prairie wetlands, and secure the future of waterfowl hunting in North America. Visit deltawaterfowl.org.

For more information, contact John Devney.