Texas Farm Subsidies: A Deep Dive Into the Lone Star State's Federal Payments

Texas is the largest agricultural state by land area and one of the most diverse. Its USDA payment profile looks nothing like Iowa's: instead of a neat corn-soybean story, Texas has cotton, grain sorghum, cattle ranching, drought-driven disaster payments, and a patchwork of specialty crops in the Rio Grande Valley.

Cotton and the commodity programs

West Texas is one of the most important cotton-producing regions in the world, and cotton has historically been one of the most heavily supported commodities in the US farm bill. PLC payments for cotton can be substantial when prices fall below reference levels, and the Seed Cotton program created in the 2018 Farm Bill specifically addressed a gap in coverage for this crop.

Cattle and disaster programs

Texas has more beef cattle than any other state, and its ranchers frequently tap disaster programs during drought years. The Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) and Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish (ELAP) generate significant payments in years when Texas droughts are severe — which has been nearly every year in recent memory.

Geographic diversity

Payment patterns differ sharply across Texas's 254 counties. The High Plains panhandle counties (Parmer, Castro, Swisher) are dominated by crop program payments, while South Texas ranching counties see mostly disaster and conservation payments. Use Texas's state page to compare counties directly.

Year-to-year volatility

Texas's totals are among the most volatile of any state, because drought-driven disaster payments can dwarf commodity payments in bad years. Check the year index to see how Texas ranks nationally across different fiscal years.