Just months after a new multi-billion dollar five year farm bill was passed into law, a federal watchdog reports that individuals who are actually ineligible for farm subsidy payments have been receiving them. The report, by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), notes that “USDA does not routinely sample individuals receiving farm payments to test for income eligibility,” and estimates that more than $49 million has been given out to those who make too much money to participate in the program. Under the new farm bill the income limit for eligibility will be slightly lower. GAO says that this modification means that even more people will be ineligible for the program, but will still receive payments. GAO has repeatedly noted that USDA does a poor job of tracking farm payments.
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