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House GOP leaders punt farm bill amid intraparty division

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by Rachel Frazin and Sudiksha Kochi - 04/29/26 3:25 PM ET

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by Rachel Frazin and Sudiksha Kochi - 04/29/26 3:25 PM ET

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House GOP leaders struck a deal with hard-line conservative rebels on Wednesday to delay a vote on the farm bill, which has been at the center of controversy in recent days as Republicans remain divided over certain provisions.

The agreement came as Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) held open a procedural rule vote for more than two hours to try to win over holdouts on a rule that would tee up debate on a final vote on the farm bill, a measure to renew the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act’s (FISA) warrantless surveillance powers and a budget blueprint to fund immigration enforcement.

The holdouts eventually ended up voting yes on the rule, but only after securing an agreement that the farm bill would be punted.

GOP Reps. Anna Paulina Luna (Fla.) and Lauren Boebert (Colo.) both confirmed that leaders would give members about two weeks to hash out their differences on the legislation before voting on it. Luna had voted no on the rule before switching to a yes, while Boebert voted yes only after talking with leadership and other members.

One sticking point around the farm bill debate was a measure that would allow for the year-round sales of gasoline with a high ethanol content known as E15, which was previously restricted amid smog concerns.

The bill in question, which would have been considered separately from the farm bill but would be tacked onto it after passage, also contained changes to a federal program that allows small refineries to get exemptions for biofuel blending requirements.

Johnson told reporters after the procedural rule vote that there’s still “some negotiation, deliberation and consternation” about the farm bill and E15 measure.

“We’re going to allow a little bit more time for the — especially the E15 issue, to be worked through with members. And so that’s what we do here. This is not a big thing. This is part of the process. We build consensus. And as you all know, we have the smallest margin conceivable, one of the smallest in the history of the United States Congress. So it takes time. You have very different opinions about all of these things across the conference from different regions of the country who see the issues differently,” he said.

The legislation was seen as a compromise between agricultural interests, which wanted to allow the sale of E15 all year, and the oil industry, which supports more exemptions from and credits related to biofuel blending requirements.

The bill has been backed by both oil and agriculture lobbying groups.

Other points of contention were measures related to pesticides, and split the party between pro-business Republicans and anti-pesticide members of the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement.

If the farm bill had advanced, the GOP was slated to allow a vote on a MAHA-led amendment that would remove controversial provisions from the bill. Those provisions are aimed at limiting lawsuits against pesticide makers, preventing localities from adding additional pesticide regulations and that would block the need for additional permits for pesticide use.

Luna, a sponsor of the amendment and critic of those provisions, said in a post on X that the bill was pulled due to “issues with E15” but that the amendment to strip the pro-pesticide provisions will get a vote at a later date.

“I have spoken with the Chair of the Rules Committee, the Speaker, Rep. Scalise, and multiple members, and we will be voting on this when we return. This means our amendment to remove pesticide liability protections will be voted on at that time,” she wrote.

Luna told reporters that she has “the votes to remove the pesticide liability protection” provision.

Boebert voted to advance the legislation on Wednesday before the farm bill was pulled. She said that she secured amendments to the bill that would seek to complete a project that would deliver water to southeastern Colorado and to designate millet as a specialty crop, which has implications for access to certain Agriculture Department programs and funds.

The House previously passed legislation that would have bolstered the water project, known as the Arkansas Valley Conduit, but President Trump vetoed it late last year.

“I successfully got my amendments included Agriculture Appropriations bill today. My amendments will officially designate millet as a specialty crop, which is a huge deal for our eastern plains farmers. I also secured the inclusion of my Finish the Arkansas Valley Conduit Act, ensuring that we finally bring clean, reliable water to the folks who have been waiting decades for it,” Boebert wrote in a post on X.

“I voted yes because I secur