When it comes down to it, the delay in the 2008 farm bill means farmers don't know what to plant for the coming season.

As some farmers work to protect their government subsidies, critics say, with farm incomes rising, it's a time to cut them.

According to the USDA, 81 percent of all farmers in the Commonwealth don't even collect subsidies. However, in the past ten years, Virginia has gained almost $71 million from the government.

Lynn Koontz, a Dayton farmer, explains how the slow passage is affecting his farm.

"It's definitely made a difference in my thinking," says Koontz. "Between that and the energy bill, energy is playing a big of role right now with the ethanol as what they're going to do with that, and when you combine the two of them. Yeah, I'm a little hesitant to decide yet which way to go."

Koontz said that getting a subsidy is a nice bonus, but that he tries not to be too dependent on the government. He said that if they're available, he'll take it, but that he doesn't include it in his budgets.