The agriculture authorization is a package of congressional legislation passed roughly once every five years. It is always full of unnecessary spending.

The so-called farm bill covers programs ranging from crop insurance for farmers to food subsidies for low-income families, an income group where morbid obesity is prevalent . How can so many Americans be so hungry when so many Americans, especially low-income Americans, are morbidly obese? Could it be that surveys on hunger target recipients of food stamps, who always want more free food?

The current farm bill, the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, expires this year. Republican members of the House of Representatives should do a root canal on the legislation.

The motivations for the original farm bills no longer exist. The farm authorization bill is a political anachronism. The farm authorization bills were born during the Great Depression. Back then, the goals of the legislation were twofold: first, to fix prices for food to ensure that both farmers and households got a fair deal, and second, to respond to the environmental degradation of the Dust Bowl. Today, however, the nation's food supply is secure. As a percentage of disposable household income, food for at-home consumption is a bargain .

Morbidity data is also clear. America faces a glut of food. The most frequent problem farmers face is oversupply. Farmers routinely overproduce corn, wheat, and soybeans, three of the main crops produced in the United States. As for environmental degradation, American farmers achieve high production levels while ensuring that the farmlands of the country are treated as a crown jewel of the economy. American farmers take great care to protect the fecundity of the soil. Agriculture is a profitable business. Farmers ensure that the source of their income is protected. The free market and self-interest protect the land. Government intervention is not necessary.

If a weather catastrophe affects American farmers, then Congress can appropriate disaster relief. In the absence of severe weather events, farm subsidies are not necessary.

In 2018 the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected the total cost of the 2018 Farm Act would be $428 billion over the 5-year period 2019–23. Nutrition programs, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), food stamps in plain words, account for about three-fourths of this total, with projected outlays for crop insurance, conservation, and commodities representing the balance . Yet, during the COVID-19 pandemic, federal spending on food stamps soared. SNAP spending will double from $63 billion in 2019 to over $127 billion this year.

The COVID crisis is over. Jobs are plentiful. Unemployment for low-income households is at record lows. Wages are elevated , albeit alongside inflation. Still, America faces a fiscal crisis . We should slash SNAP. Real poverty in the country is almost non-existent . Free food is not a constitutional right.

Unnecessary agriculture spending is further illustrated by who gets farm subsidies. About 50% of farm subsidies go to agriculture households which have a median income three times the national average. The agriculture bill is welfare for the wealthy. The egregiousness of the waste is compounded by the net wealth of farmers. The value of farmland in America’s grain belt exceeds $11,000 an acre. America’s farmers are rich in income and land.

In turn, we should gut the farm bill. Republicans in the House of Representatives should say "no" to more spending on agriculture. The federal government cannot continue to throw money away. If not, they should admit that they love government spending just as much as Democrats. Just as much, that is, when the government spending goes to their favored constituents.

James Rogan is a former U.S. foreign service officer who later worked in finance and law for 30 years. He writes   a daily note   on finance and the economy, politics, sociology, and criminal justice.