The Senate Ag Committee is holding field hearings on the farm bill this month with the first scheduled for February 23 in Manhattan, Kansas. South Dakota Senator John Thune serves on the committee and says he believes the focus of the next program will be providing an adequate safety net, which means making some tweaks to the ARC program. He also expects a push to expand conservation programs and funding for CRP.

Thune says he is working on a new conservation program that would incentivize producers to take land out of production, but for a shorter duration than CRP. The Soil Health and Income Protection Program or SHIPP is tied in with crop insurance.

He is planning to reveal full details of the program soon, but so far he has had good feedback from farmers and other lawmakers.

The House Ag Committee will hold its first hearing next Wednesday.