Reflections on Agricultural Policy Formation in the United States

Major redefinition of agricultural policy in the United States appears imminent. Appropriate committees in both houses of Congress held exhaustive hearings during 1947 on both the content of agricultural policy (revision of parity, manner of price supports, regulation of marketing, and production control) and the manner of organization of agricultural administration. In its last hours, the Eightieth Congress revised parity and price supports, postponing the effective date to January 1, 1950. But, significantly, Congress could not agree on a reorganization of agricultural administration. There was no lack of proposals. Major farm organizations and the Department of Agriculture presented recommendations, and sweeping measures were introduced by Senator Aiken (and others) and Congressman Hope. But the Hope and Aiken bills were diametrically opposed in a manner reflecting basic divergencies among powerful interests. In part, of course, the failure of the Eightieth Congress to reorganize the administrative framework appears to mark the strategic success of Congressman Hope's efforts to insure the next secretary of agriculture some freedom in the matter. But the failure certainly underlines the controversial nature of the subject; indeed, the manner of administration in agriculture is hardly less controversial than the content of agricultural policy.