URBANA, IL – New county-level maps from the University of Illinois show farm bill Title I payments reached most of rural America from 2014 through 2023, but the largest totals were concentrated in a relatively small number of counties. The updated Policy Design Lab found 97 percent of counties received some payments, yet only 24 counties topped $100 million and 197 exceeded $50 million.
The regional pattern is clear, but the comparison is not simple. The report says 18 of the top 25 counties for total ARC and PLC payments were in the South, while the counties with the most base acres were concentrated in places such as Montana, North Dakota, and Washington.
That matters because total payments alone do not explain the policy picture. Southern counties showed higher payments per base acre, but those areas also include crops such as cotton that carry much higher production costs than corn or soybeans, especially relative to average crop prices. The more important policy question is how program design interacts with crop mix, base acres, and payment triggers.
The report says PLC and ARC-CO produced notably different outcomes. Twenty-one of the top 25 PLC counties were in the South, while 23 of the top 25 ARC-CO counties were in the Midwest, and PLC generally produced higher payments per base acre.
The updated maps do not settle the fairness debate, but they do sharpen it. They show that payment outcomes remain highly uneven by region, crop, and program structure as Congress continues to revisit farm policy.
Farm-Level Takeaway: The new county maps show farm program payments are widespread, but payment design still produces very different outcomes across regions and crops.
Click here for more information: https://farmdocdaily.illinois.edu/2026/04/once-again-through-the-payments-lens-another-update-from-the-policy-design-lab.html