Statement on the new $12 billion farm aid package

This statement is in response to breaking news. Please contact pr@rstreet.org to speak with the scholar.

In response to President Trump announcing the latest in a long series of bailout packages for farmers, Nan Swift, a resident fellow with R Street’s governance program, released the following statement:

“The Trump administration’s long-promised $12 billion trade bailout package comes with little surprise and fewer details. Touted as a “one-time payment,” this comes on top of previous trade mitigation payments made under the first Trump administration. It also joins other ad hoc “emergency” payments–now nearly $40 billion in 2025 alone–to farmers on top of the generous, taxpayer-backed safety net already enjoyed by the agriculture industry.

“Farmers have been dealt a bad hand by the current administration’s disorderly trade policies. But they are not alone or uniquely put-upon. Every day Americans, consumers, and businesses both large and small face the same intolerable price increases, supply chain disruptions, and ongoing uncertainty. Notably, average Americans have an even greater handicap than agribusinesses: according to the latest data, the 2024 median household income for all Americans was nearly $84,000. During the same period, the median farm household income was more than $102,000 and is expected to rise this year, largely due to government payments, of which farm households will now receive even more. 

Like a dirty bandaid plastered on a gaping wound, handouts to favored constituencies won’t address the underlying issues of markets and overproduction, and could create a contagion of distortion, further exacerbating these problems. 

It remains to be seen how and to whom this trade aid will be distributed. Past trade mitigation payments under the first Trump administration suffered from nearly $800 million in improper payments and a lack of accountability. While Americans writ large continue to wait on a long-term remedy to this unnecessary hardship, at the very least, trade payments should be targeted to those who need them most with a high degree of oversight and transparency.”