Trump Administration

Trump's $8 Billion Diesel Bailout Pays Farmers for a Problem He Created

The new Harvest Fuel Relief program is the latest payment to farmers squeezed by the president’s own war and tariffs.

Tosin Akintola | 10.20.2026 4:22 PM

Share on FacebookShare on XShare on RedditShare by emailPrint friendly versionCopy page URL Add Reason to Google

Media Contact & Reprint Requests

(Illustration: Andrew Leyden/ZUMAPRESS/Newscom/Robyn Mackenzie/Sebastian Czapnik/Dreamstime/Fatima Ruiz.)

On Monday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced it would "make $8 billion available for one-time payments to American farmers this harvest season to provide relief during temporary market disruptions and increased input costs."

Using a formula derived from the USDA's production, yield, and price estimates, the Harvest Fuel Relief program will "provide simple, proportional support to producers." It will only cover a "portion of modeled losses during the 2026 crop year." The Farm Service Agency—an office within the USDA that administers credit and loan programs—will administer the $8 billion in one-time payments using funds from the Commodity Credit Corporation, a........

© Reason.com