WASHINGTON, D.C. — Just before funding for the federal government was set to expire on Dec. 23, Congress passed a $1.7 trillion spending bill, averting a government shutdown. President Biden signed the bill int law Dec. 29.

The package, called the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, will fund the federal government through next September.

Critics from both parties say the 4,155-page omnibus spending bill is yet another everything-but-the-kitchen-sink package with major spending increases and policy changes.

The bill appropriates dollars to Pell tuition grants, Head Start, national defense, support for Ukraine, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and a wide range of other programs.

It makes policy changes, too — banning the social media application TikTok from government devices, changing public lands management and restructuring the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, to name a few.

It also includes major investments in agriculture and rural economies.

”These huge investments will benefit farms and families in every corner of the state,” said U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore. Merkley is on the Appropriations Committee.

Key funding related to agriculture and rural communities includes:

• Disaster relief: The bill includes $3.7 billion in relief payments for farmers who have faced loss due to floods, wildfires, drought, extreme heat or smoke exposure.

• Water conservation and habitat restoration: The package includes $75 million for USDA’s Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations Program. The funds will replace open irrigation ditches with pipes and improve wildlife habitats.

• Winegrape smoke exposure research: The bill includes $5 million for research at West Coast universities into smoke-impacted grapes.

• Rural energy saving: The package provides $110 million in loan authority for energy efficiency upgrades.

• Research: The Agricultural Research Service will receive an increase of $111 million for research efforts, including on Sudden Oak Death and specialty crops. The bill will also fund facility improvements at the Burns and Pendleton research stations.

• Rangeland livestock: The bill includes $4.5 million for developing strategies to improve rangeland health and rangeland-based livestock nutrition. Funds will be split among Western land-grant universities and the Western Rangeland Precision Livestock Center.

• Hemp: The bill directs $4 million to hemp genetic and breeding research led by USDA.

• Environmental Protection Agency: The bill provides the EPA with $10 billion, a $576 million increase from this year’s funding level. It increases funding for diesel emissions reduction grants, “environmental justice activities” and hazardous site cleanups.

• Interior Department: The Interior Department gets $14.7 billion, an increase of $574 million. This includes increased spending on sage grouse conservation and protecting threatened and endangered species.

• Forest Service: The bill directs $3.9 billion to the U.S. Forest Service for 2023, $222.7 million more than the fiscal year 2022 level.

• Rural housing: The package includes $1.5 billion in rental assistance and $48 million in Rural Housing Service Vouchers.

• Rural development: With $4.4 billion, the bill funds several of USDA’s Rural Development programs, including rural housing and business development programs.

• Rural health: The bill spends $145 million on the Rural Communities Opioid Crisis Program, $12.5 million on State Offices of Rural Health and $5 million to establish an Office of Rural Health at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

• Rural broadband: The legislation provides $455 million for expanding broadband.

An earlier version of this story misstated that President Biden signed the bill before Dec. 23. In fact, he did not sign the bill until Dec. 29. The story has been updated to reflect this.