The Trump administration on Monday unveiled a $12 billion, one-time assistance package aimed mainly at growers of soybeans, corn and other row crops, saying the payments will offset costs tied to this year’s tariff increases. The plan was announced at a White House roundtable attended by affected farmers and senior officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins.
Officials said the funds will come from a portion of revenue generated by the administration’s tariff program and will be distributed through a new Farm Bridge Assistance program. The White House described the program as temporary relief designed to help producers until broader economic measures such as tax changes and other trade actions have more effect. Funding will be drawn from the USDA’s Commodity Credit Corporation, the same authority used for previous farmer aid.
The administration framed the move as a response to economic pressure on core agricultural communities as tariff impacts take hold. Agricultural groups have pointed to falling prices for row crops in recent years combined with rising input costs; tariffs have also increased prices for machinery and fertilizer, the Farm Bureau and other organizations say.
White House officials characterized the payments as targeted economic assistance to stabilize farms during the transition to the administration’s policies. In related comments, the president said he would pursue rollbacks of certain environmental regulations affecting large farm equipment in an effort to lower equipment costs. Manufacturers caution, however, that tariffs themselves have already raised expenses, with industry estimates earlier this year projecting substantial costs tied to trade measures.
The announcement signals a short-term relief effort for producers while the administration continues to defend its broader tariff and economic strategy as a path to longer-term improvements for the agricultural sector.