U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) released an outline of his priorities for the 2026 Farm Bill, explicitly opposing language he says would preempt California’s Proposition 12. Schiff on Senate Ag Committee he noted, is the first California senator on the Agriculture Committee in more than three decades and gives him a platform to press for protections he sees as vital to California producers and consumers. Schiff said his priorities include restoring and strengthening nutrition programs, expanding opportunities for specialty crop growers, increasing research investments and protecting Proposition 12 while addressing immigration for farmworkers.
Schiff described Proposition 12 as a voter-approved baseline for public health, food safety and animal welfare covering egg-laying hens, veal calves and sows. He warned that the House-passed farm bill includes provisions that would preempt state laws like Prop 12 and called such measures “poison pills” that must be excluded from any final bill. House bill nullifies Prop 12 appears in Schiff’s outline as a direct red line for his support of the legislation.
Schiff said the farm bill must reflect economic opportunity, health, sustainability, national security and prosperity for farmers, farmworkers and rural communities. He said he will push for programs that empower California specialty crop producers and for investments that help farmers expand market opportunities and resilience.
Farm bill debate
Republican Sen. John Boozman, chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, praised House passage of a bipartisan Farm Bill 2.0 and said the legislation moves long-overdue policy updates forward. Boozman also told the National Association of Farm Broadcasting that while he supports including a Prop 12 fix in the farm bill, he doubts Democratic support for the current approach: “I don’t think there’s a single Democrat that would vote for it.” He added committee leaders may need to offer compromises to find middle ground.
Industry groups pressing for a Prop 12 fix include the National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau Federation, along with nearly 400 other agricultural organizations that sent a coalition letter to congressional leaders. Nearly 400 organizations urged lawmakers to address what they describe as Prop 12’s shortcomings, citing the risk of a patchwork of differing state laws, higher compliance costs, and adverse impacts on food prices and producer viability.
NPPC President Rob Brenneman, a pork producer from Washington County, Iowa, thanked House champions such as Chairman GT Thompson and Rep. Ashley Hinson for advancing a fix and urged the Senate to follow suit. The coalition also noted both former Trump administration Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and current Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack have called on Congress to act on the initiative.
Schiff said he will use his committee role to advocate for the priorities he outlined and to block preemption language that would undo state animal-welfare standards. Senate leaders, including Boozman, indicated legislative text for the Senate version of the farm bill will be released soon, and Boozman said he looks forward to releasing that text in the coming weeks.
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