“This new law will help provide much-needed certainty to farmers in Tennessee and across the country, which is one of the reasons it is supported by the Tennessee agriculture community, including the Tennessee Farm Bureau, Tennessee Soybean Association, Tennessee Cattleman’s Association, Tennessee Farmer’s Cooperative and other agriculture and conservation groups.” 

WASHINGTON, December 20, 2018 – United States Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today said President Trump signed into law important legislation that will provide much-needed certainty to Tennessee’s 340,000 farmers.

“Agriculture is one of Tennessee’s most important industries, with more than 66,000 farms contributing approximately $74 billion each year to our state’s economy,” Alexander said. “I’m glad President Trump signed into law this critical legislation today – it’s good news for Tennessee’s 340,000 farmers because it supports U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) agriculture, rural development, and conservation programs that benefit farmers across Tennessee as well as agricultural research at Tennessee’s universities to help find ways for farmers to grow better crops. This new law will also help provide much-needed certainty to farmers in Tennessee and across the country, which is one of the reasons it is supported by the Tennessee agriculture community, including the Tennessee Farm Bureau, Tennessee Soybean Association, Tennessee Cattleman’s Association, Tennessee Farmer’s Cooperative and other agriculture and conservation groups.”

Tennessee is home to more than 66,000 farms and nearly 11 million acres of farmland.

The new law also includes Alexander’s Tennessee Wilderness Act, which he introduced in 2017 with Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and U.S. Representative Phil Roe (R-Tenn.). The law will designate nearly 20,000 acres of the Cherokee National Forest as a wilderness area. Designation as a wilderness area is the highest level of conservation protection to preserve federal land.

The Senate passed the final conferenced version of the Farm bill on December 11, 2018 by a vote of 87-13. The U.S. House of Representatives passed it on December 12, 2018 by a vote of 369-47.

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