Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning. Thank you for being here today. Today’s hearing builds on the important work done by the CEEC subcommittee last year, under the helm of Chairman Austin Scott and Ranking Member David Scott. I want to thank them for their work examining how well our regulators responded to the financial crisis. While those hearings were focused on past performance, to... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning and thank you all for joining us. As we continue working to craft the next farm bill, we turn our attention to one of the primary drivers of innovation and productivity in our 21st century agricultural economy – university research. For more than 100 years, our producers have relied on investments in agricultural research to drive efficiencies and gai... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning and welcome to today's hearing. Nearly 70 years ago, my predecessors exhibited exceptional foresight through their investment in watershed infrastructure projects. The lasting benefits of those investments through the Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations program—also commonly known as P.L. 566—have allowed NRCS to partner with local communities t... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning, and welcome to today’s Nutrition Subcommittee hearing on SNAP technology and modernization. Thank you to everyone for taking the time to be here, particularly our four witnesses. As many of you know, our committee has conducted a thorough review of SNAP over the past two years. I want to take a moment to share why this was done and what we hope to ac... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning and thank you all for joining us. Before we get started, I wanted to extend my condolences to our friends at Didion Milling. John Didion testified before the committee in September 2015 about the important work they do in milling grain into specially designed food aid products. Unfortunately, one week ago today, Didion Milling experienced a catastroph... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Mr. Secretary, welcome to you, sir. We have visited many times before — including prior to your taking office — but allow me to officially declare this committee’s sincere congratulations on becoming our nation’s 31st secretary of agriculture. We are eager to work with you and are certain you will uphold the office with the utmost respect and concern for rural Ame... Read more »
Today we will consider H.R. 1177, the Removing Outdated Restrictions to Allow for Job Growth Act. In the early 1980s, the City of Old Town, Maine, purchased land from the federal government to be part of the Old Town Airport. The deed included a restriction limiting use of the land to a municipal airport or other public use. This bill allows the City of Old Town to petition the Secretary of Agricu... Read more »
H.R. 2154 renames the Red River Valley Agricultural Research Center in Fargo, North Dakota, as the Edward T. Schafer Agricultural Research Center. Ed Schafer served as North Dakota’s Governor from 1992 to 2000, and as our nation’s Secretary of Agriculture from 2008 to 2009. Renaming the Red River Valley Agricultural Research Center in Fargo, North Dakota, to honor Secretary Schafer is a fitting tr... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning. I want to welcome you all to today’s hearing examining how the tax code impacts American agricultural producers. Much like it did in 1985 and 1986, tax reform is poised to again consume much of Washington’s attention. Before that happens, today’s hearing will offer Members a baseline understanding of how the current tax code affects farmers, ranchers... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good afternoon, and welcome to today’s subcommittee hearing. Over the past several weeks, the Agriculture Committee has held a series of hearings in preparation for crafting the next farm bill. Through this, the Committee has examined the overall farm economy, reviewed the safety and soundness of the Farm Credit System, and heard from a broad constituency on nearl... Read more »
