WASHINGTON (DTN) -- The House of Representatives passed a $95 billion budget resolution Wednesday along party lines that would direct up to $12 billion in aid to struggling farmers while providing $73 billion for defense and intelligence spending tied to the ongoing war with Iran.

The resolution passed 216-214, with Reps. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio; Thomas Massie, R-Ky.; and Kevin Kiley, I-Calif., voting with all Democrats against it.

Farm groups and lawmakers have called for additional aid as the war in Iran strains agricultural markets.

The American Farm Bureau Federation applauded the progress toward budget reconciliation.

"We applaud members of the House of Representatives for recognizing the economic toll facing farm country and advancing farm aid as part of their reconciliation package," AFBF said in a statement. "High production costs and weak commodity prices are expected to drive billions in losses across row crops in 2027, with additional losses facing specialty crop, alfalfa and sugar producers," they said.

The National Farmers Union also welcomed the farm aid but warned congressional leaders in a letter on Wednesday that funding the war with $73 billion could further harm farms.

"We are troubled by funding that perpetuates a costly military conflict that risks further disrupting global markets, increasing input costs, and contributing to the economic pressures already weighing on farm operations," the group stated in the letter obtained by DTN. "Farmers should not have to bear the financial consequences of policies that further erode their bottom lines," it said.

The request for farm aid was always tied to additional funding for the war since Trump first created the proposal.

"We urge you to prioritize policies that provide meaningful, lasting support to farmers and ranchers while avoiding measures that could further undermine their economic viability," the letter stated.

The budget resolution gives the House Agriculture Committee instructions for spending. The committee's chairman, G.T. Thompson, R-Pa., has repeatedly said the dollars would go toward row crops, specialty crops and sawmills.

The Senate must now adopt its own budget resolution framework before actual legislation can be drafted.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters on Thursday, "As I've said before, you got to get to 50 (votes), and I can't count to 50 right now on a budget resolution."

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., told reporters, "I don't think Sen. Thune's going to take it up."

Also on Thursday, a group of 40 former agriculture government officials and farmer board members sent a letter to congressional agriculture leaders. In it, they stated, "The limited response (to the farm economy) by Congress does not match the extent and severity of the difficulties farmers are encountering every day."

The group criticized the Republican-led Congress for failing to prevent war, address rising input costs, curb beef imports, resolve tariffs and trade disputes and make progress on the USMCA, while calling for a stronger democratic process.

The group also reminded lawmakers that it had sent a previous letter on Feb. 3, asking Congress to hold hearings on the farm crisis. "This has not happened," they stated.

Both chambers of Congress have held oversight hearings of Trump administration officials in 2026, but none of those hearings specifically addressed the farm crisis.

"Even as the administration has promised a swift end to the war, costs have piled up at a billion dollars or more each day, and Congress has failed to exercise its constitutional responsibility for oversight," the groups stated.

The House is heading into its summer recess having passed all farm legislation currently within reach, though an agriculture workforce bill stalled after Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, blocked its progress.

It also passed a short-term funding extension, or continuing resolution, through Dec. 4, 2026. The measure funds USDA nutrition programs and the work of the U.S. Forest Service.

The Senate has two weeks to hold a farm bill markup and consider its own budget resolution, which was discussed in the Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday.

For more, see "Rollins: Farm Aid Buys Time for Ag" here: https://www.dtnpf.com/….

Jake Zajkowski can be reached at jake.zajkowski@dtn.com

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