Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is upset with the budget deal announced Monday night calling for a cut of $3 billion in the crop insurance program. The budget agreement reached between Congressional leaders and the Obama administration puts an 8.9-percent cap on the rate of return for insurance providers between the 2017 and 2026 reinsurance years. Grassley says the budget hacks are pushing USDA to slash crop insurance to reach a budget agreement.

Grassley says crop insurance is a critical program for farmers and needs to be preserved.

The Iowa Senator defended the crop insurance program at the Republican Caucus meeting Monday night where he learned about the planned cut.

The National Association of Wheat Growers, The Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau, National Crop Insurance Service and American Association of Crop Insurers are all opposing the reported budget deal. They say crop insurance has already sustained $12 billion in cuts since 2008.