On Tuesday, a proposal made by House of Representatives Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan called for substantially larger reductions to farm and crop insurance subsidies than agricultural lawmakers had previously suggested - slashing assistance by $30 billion over a period of 10 years.

If passed, the Agriculture Committee will be required to write a farm bill that addresses the goal of $30 billion, a substantially higher number than the $23 million estimated by committee leaders earlier this month.

Ryan's initiative called for reductions in the annual $5 billion "direct payment" subsidy and for reforms regarding federally subsidized crop insurance, which comprises the majority of the farm safety net, slated at nearly $9 billion a year.

"The process outlined by the House Republican budget all but guarantees there will be no farm bill this year," said Collin Peterson, the Democratic leader on the House Agriculture Committee, also stating that the cuts set forth by Ryan concerning farm assistance and food stamps were too steep for Congress to move forward.

Congress could still elect to extend the current farm law. However, if they do not extend the law and no revised farm bill is approved this year, a previous law first established in 1949 that features higher agricultural costs and planting regulations, would automatically go into effect by default.