For Immediate Release

Contact: Laura Zaks

National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition

press@sustainableagriculture.net

Release: NSAC Urges Reconsideration of Problematic OMB Proposed Rule

Washington, DC, July 14, 2026 – Yesterday, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) submitted detailed comments to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) citing major concerns with OMB’s proposed Regulation for Federal Financial Assistance and urging the agency to rescind the rule in its entirety. NSAC warned that the proposal would inject new uncertainty and risk into an already fragile agricultural sector and undermine the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) ability to fulfill its mission.

In its 20‑plus page comment letter, NSAC outlines concerns with the proposal, including, as the comment states:“new and expanded discretionary suspension and termination authority; legal and compliance concerns regarding vague and undefined terms; added burdens on funding recipients and particularly on farmers and partnership projects; politicization of grant review and funding decisions; conflicts with USDA’s own statutory authorities; and an overall lack of clarity regarding scope and applicability to USDA grantees.” 

“Each of these concerns alone is significant enough to warrant substantial revision,” said Sophia Kruszewski, NSAC Deputy Policy Director. “Taken cumulatively, they illustrate the dire need to rescind the proposed rule in its entirety and restart the rulemaking process from the beginning, taking care to ensure there are multiple meaningful opportunities to effectively solicit and integrate USDA-specific facts, legal authorities, and stakeholder input.”

NSAC’s comment emphasizes that many of USDA’s most important farm bill and rural development programs, including farmer conservation program contracts, beginning farmer training programs, local and regional food system initiatives, and critical agricultural loan programs, could be destabilized if funding agreements can be suspended or canceled at any time at the political discretion of agency leadership. 

“Since January 2025, sudden funding freezes, unanticipated grant terminations, and abrupt full program cancellations—not to mention a woefully understaffed USDA—have upended farmers’ business plans and planting decisions, delayed and prevented farmland purchases, prompted layoffs, and left farmers in the lurch awaiting reimbursements for purchases made under duly executed agreements. Agriculture will always have disruptive events, from market disruptions and natural disasters to pandemics and pests. Yet, the structure of federal policy determines the impact of those disruptions on farm families, their communities, the land, and the country. The federal government should offer more, not less, certainty and stability for farmers already confronting the compounding impacts of increasing production costs, decreasing income, rising land prices, lost markets, and evolving pest pressures,” the comment states.

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About the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC)

The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition is a grassroots alliance that advocates for federal policy reform supporting the long-term social, economic, and environmental sustainability of agriculture, natural resources, and rural communities. 

Learn more and get involved at: https://sustainableagriculture.net