The New Base Acre Provisions in the 2025 Farm Bill

By Carl Zulauf and Gary Schnitkey et.al

This articles continues the discussion begun in the July 1, 2025 farmdoc daily of the new base acre provision in the 2025 Farm Bill.  The provision is systematically laid out.  Several implementation questions that USDA, FSA (US Department of Agriculture, Farm Service Agency) may need to address are noted.  An indicator of new base acres is calculated for the US and states.  “Indicator” rather than “estimate” is used given the implementation questions.  The 30 million acre cap on new base acres will likely be exceeded, necessitating pro-rating of new base acres.  States in the Plains and Midwest are likely to add the largest number of new base acres.  States with few base acres are likely to have the highest percent increase.  States with peanuts and rice will receive more payments from these high per acre payment crops.  There appears to be something for nearly every state.  Farms that currently have a close match between their planted and base acres stand to gain the least, and thus are relative losers among farms.  And, the US taxpayer will need to finance the expected large increase in Federal outlays for commodity programs.

New Base Acre Provisions

Eligibility

1. A current covered program commodity must have been planted some year during 2019-2023.

Calculating and Allocating New Base

2. Planted acres must exceed September 30, 2024 total base acres of all covered commodities, excluding unassigned generic cotton base.
   Planted acres of a FSA farm equal
   1. 2019-2023 average, all years included, of acres planted or prevented from being planted to covered program commodities on the FSA farm; plus
   2. The lesser of
      1. 15% of total acres on the FSA farm or
      2. 2019-2023 average, all years included, of acres planted or prevented from being planted to eligible noncovered commodities on the FSA farm.
         1. Eligible noncovered commodity acres are acres planted or prevented from being planted to commodities other than covered commodities, trees, bushes, vines, grass, or pasture (including cropland that was idle or fallow), as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture.
3. For an eligible FSA farm, new base acres equal [(planted acres from above) plus (unassigned generic cotton base) minus (total September 30, 2024 base acres)].
4. No new program commodities are created. New base acres are allocated among current covered commodities planted on the FSA farm over 2019-2023 using the following ratio:
   [(2019-2023, all years included, average of acres planted and prevented planted to a given covered commodity) to (2019-2023, all years included, average of total acres planted or prevented planted to all covered commodities on the FSA farm)].
5. Other than under an established practice of double cropping covered commodities with FSA, an owner cannot include both covered commodities planted or prevent planted on the same acre. The owner must choose which one is used to calculate the 5-year average.