Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008

Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008

Long title	An act to provide for the continuation of agricultural programs through fiscal year 2012, and for other purposes.
Nicknames	2008 U.S. Farm Bill Agricultural Security Improvement Act of 2008
Enacted by	the 110th United States Congress
Effective	May 22, 2008
Citations
Public law	110–234
Statutes at Large	122 Stat. 923 through 122 Stat. 1551 (628 pages)
Legislative history
Introduced in the House of Representatives as H.R. 2419 by Collin Peterson (D–MN) on May 22, 2007 Committee consideration by Agriculture, Foreign Affairs Passed the House of Representatives on July 27, 2007 (231–191) Passed the Senate as the Food and Energy Security Act on December 14, 2007 (79–14) Reported by the joint conference committee on May 13, 2008; agreed to by the House of Representatives on May 14, 2008 (318–106) and by the Senate on May 15, 2008 (81–15) Vetoed by President George W. Bush on May 21, 2008 Overridden by the House of Representatives on May 21, 2008 (316–108) Overridden by the Senate and became law on May 22, 2008 (82–13)

The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Pub.L. 110–234, H.R. 2419, 122 Stat. 923, enacted May 22, 2008, also known as the 2008 U.S. Farm Bill) was a $288 billion, five-year agricultural policy bill that was passed into law by the United States Congress on June 18, 2008. The bill was a continuation of the 2002 Farm Bill. It continues the United States' long history of agricultural subsidy as well as pursuing areas such as energy, conservation, nutrition, and rural development. Some specific initiatives in the bill include increases in Food Stamp benefits, increased support for the production of cellulosic ethanol, and money for the research of pests, diseases and other agricultural problems.

On January 1, 2013, Congress passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 to avert the fiscal cliff and the next day President Barack Obama signed the Act into law. (Public Law No: 112-240) The "fiscal cliff" deal was primarily enacted to avoid automatic tax hikes and spending cuts, but also included provisions extending portions of the 2008 Farm Bill for nine months through September 30, 2013. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has demonstrated a commitment to working on a new five-year Farm Bill by reintroducing last session's Senate Farm Bill in the new 113th Congress.

One version of this legislation, the Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007 was passed by the United States House of Representatives on July 27, 2007. Despite opposition from some senators, including a failed amendment proposal by Senator Richard Lugar and a veto threat by President Bush, the Senate version of the bill, called the Food and Energy Security Act, was passed by the Senate Agriculture Committee on October 25, 2007, and later by the full Senate on December 14. In late April 2008, congressional negotiators finally reached a deal to reconcile the House and Senate bills. The deal increased spending on food stamps and other food programs while mostly maintaining the current farm subsidies, despite record farm profits.

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