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    Between Soil and Society
    Legislative History and Political Development of Farm Bill Conservation Policy

    Jonathan Coppess (Author)

    9781496225146

    Hardback, published 1 May 2024

    356 pages, index
    22.9 x 15.2 x 3.1 cm, 0.686 kg

    "This book is a substantial contribution and stellar resource for those interested in conservation and agricultural policy. . . . As we move forward in the era of climate emergencies, the importance of conservation and responsible stewardship cannot be overstated, yet questions remain about the potential for a democratic society to craft climate-friendly conservation policy in a political climate where policy remains shaped by corporate interests."-Aimee Imlay, H-Environment
    "This is a must read for anyone who wants an in-depth understanding of farm policy."-R. E. O'Connor, Choice
    “Between Soil and Society is based on deep research in congressional sources, current discussions of farm policy, and a huge secondary literature on the economics of agriculture, the evolution of farm policy, and the nature of congressional behavior. Jonathan Coppess’s understanding of farm policy since 1990 is especially impressive, and his ability to root this discussion in a larger historical context makes this book a first-rate work of scholarship. This is a major contribution to the literature on farm policy and on congressional behavior and the legislative process.”-David E. Hamilton, author of From New Day to New Deal: American Farm Policy from Hoover to Roosevelt, 1928–1933

     Winner of the 2024 Professional Scholarship Award from American Agricultural Law Association

    The United States spends approximately $5 billion each year on federal programs designed to conserve natural resources and address the environmental consequences of modern agricultural production. Like farm policy, agricultural conservation policy is rooted in the Roosevelt administration’s New Deal efforts of the 1930s. Farm conservation policy has waxed and waned since then, related to fluctuating economic and environmental concerns.

    In Between Soil and Society Jonathan Coppess traces the history and development of U.S. conservation policy, especially as it compares to and interacts with the development of farm policy. By answering questions about the differences in political support and development for these similar policy regimes, with efforts to apply legal and political theory to understand the differences, Coppess considers the implications of climate change and lessons for future policy development. One of the few books to make sense of the legal and economic analysis of agricultural conservation policy, Between Soil and Society provides a window into larger issues of American politics, governance, and policy development.

    Acknowledgments
    Part 1. Introduction
    1. Of Farming, Conservation, and the Farm Bill: An Introduction
    2. Of Congress and the Conservation Question: A Preliminary Discussion
    Part 2. Dust Bowl Origins
    3. Out of Dust, Sharecropping, and the Supreme Court: An Origin’
    s Backstory
    4. Reform amid Ruin: Lessons from the 74th Congress
    Part 3. The Soil Bank Saga
    5. Out of Surplus and Policy Failure: The Rise of the Soil Bank
    6. Southern Sabotage: The Swift Demise of the Soil Bank
    Part 4. The Food Security Act of 1985
    7. From Dust to Dust: The Seventies Interlude and Backstory
    8. A New Foundation for Conservation Policy: The Food Security Act of 1985
    Part 5. Modern Conservation Policy Developments
    9. Modern Developments: Farm Bill Conservation Policy after 1985
    10. Of Congress and the Conservation Question: A Working Theory and Closing Argument
    Notes
    Bibliography
    Index
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