This was supposed to be the year for a new Farm Bill, the five-year legislation that funds farm subsidy programs, conservation efforts and food assistance for low-income Americans.

Unsurprisingly, our dysfunctional Congress couldn’t get its act together for what is usually a bipartisan effort and chose to punt instead, extending by one year the 2018 Farm Bill that expired on Sept. 30. The extension means that agricultural landowners will get government money that otherwise would have dried up at year-end, and 40 million people will continue to receive food stamps through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.