Does Farm Size Matter? Distribution of Crop Insurance Subsidies and Government Program Payments across U.S. Farms

Anton Bekkerman, Eric J. Belasco and Vincent H. Smith

Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, 2019, vol. 41, issue 3, 498-518

Abstract: This study uses farm‐level information from the ARMS database to evaluate the distribution of payments from major 2014 Farm Bill safety net programs—federal crop insurance, Agricultural Risk Coverage, and Price Loss Coverage—across farm size. Results indicate that farms within the top decile for crop sales receive over two‐thirds of the total payments from these programs. Recent legislative proposals to implement payment caps on each farm are shown to impact a relatively small percentage of farms that are almost entirely within the top decile of crop sales. However, implementing these caps is likely to result in as much as $2.51 billion in taxpayer savings. These help provide direction for continued efforts to design cost‐effective, equitable agricultural safety net policies.

Date: 2019
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https://doi.org/10.1093/aepp/ppy024

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:wly:apecpp:v:41:y:2019:i:3:p:498-518

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