Marcia BungerUSDA Risk Management Agency (RMA) Administrator Marcia Bunger is looking ahead to the 2023 Farm Bill and potential impacts on crop insurance heading into the new year. Noticing a heightened interest in margin protection policies, Bunger says she understands the additional interest but recognizes the amount farmers must pay in a premium for the margin protection can often be “quite a bit”. She comments that her role as Farm Bill discussions ramp up will be to answer questions and provide technical assistance to Congress, in any way possible, in addition to keeping a close ear to the needs of farmers and ranchers.

For insurance programs, Administrator Bunger is often asked about the outlook for specialty crop policies. While Bunger comments the necessary yield and pricing data is difficult to capture right now, she does aim to make crop insurance available for specialty crops at the same coverage levels as row crops. Until then, Bunger cites Whole-Farm Revenue Protection and Micro Farm programs as viable options.

Bunger also notes the agency is exploring ways to reduce paperwork on other insurance programs in future years.

Read more on RMA Administrator Marcia Bunger on the farm bill and insurance speculation for 2023.