House Republicans conspicuously waive language limiting access to the abortion pill mifepristone in their newly unveiled farm finance bill, after a similar effort last year helped doom their 2024 plan, while exposed intra-party divisions on the issue.
The powerful GOP-led House Appropriations Committee unveiled the legislation Monday afternoon as leaders pursue an aggressive timeline to pass all 12 of the party’s annual funding bills before Congress recesses in August. .
But notably missing from the text is a provision that Republicans previously sought as part of their fiscal year 2024 farm financing plan, which aimed to overturn a Biden administration rule that allowed mifepristone to be sold in retail pharmacies and distributed through the mail. .
His absence comes after GOP leaders struggled to pass the previous bill amid opposition from moderates, and as abortion remains a priority for some voters months before the critical November elections.
The bill, which funds the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), provides more than $25 billion in total discretionary funding for fiscal year 2025, which is below current levels.
In a statement Monday, Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), chairman of the subcommittee that drafted the plan, praised the newly unveiled plan as one that “supports our rural communities, strengthens our food supply, continues to critical investments in agricultural research and rural broadband, and the FDA to ensure the safety of medicines and devices.”
“This year, the Agriculture Appropriations bill also focuses on raising the nutritional needs of SNAP participants by giving states the opportunity to participate in a pilot program that restricts unhealthy foods,” he also said, referring to the Agriculture Appropriations Act. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP).
Among the conclusions that Republicans also highlight in the 126 pages The plan includes a measure that they say would allow “states to voluntarily participate in a pilot program to restrict the purchase of unhealthy foods with SNAP benefits,” a summary States.
However, that measure and others have already encountered opposition from Democrats, who say the bill would threaten access to food for vulnerable Americans, among other accusations.
“This bill makes it harder for working people to buy homes in rural areas and cuts water and waste subsidies that help families and businesses access clean water,” Rep. Rosa DeLauro (Conn.), top Democrat in the House Appropriations Committee, said in a statement.
“At a time when families around the world are struggling to feed their children, this bill would reduce the Food for Peace program to its lowest level since 2002 and implement the misguided ‘SNAP Choice’ pilot program.”
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