Washington, D.C. – House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) announced the addition of Rachel Millard to lead his committee communications team. Rachel Millard has been named communications director for the House Agriculture Committee ahead of the upcoming 2018 Farm Bill. Most recently, Millard handled public affairs and corporate communications strategy at the Glover Park Gr... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Today, House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway released the following statement after U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced plans to restructure the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) while creating an Undersecretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs. “I commend Secretary Perdue and the Administration for, after just two weeks in office... 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Today we will consider H.R. 1177, the Removing Outdated Restrictions to Allow for Job Growth Act.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 »
Washington, D.C. - Today, the House Agriculture Committee approved two measures—one designed to stimulate job creation in Maine and the other to honor the distinguished career of former Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer. H.R. 1177, the Removing Outdated Restrictions to Allow for Job Growth Act, would remove the deed restriction on the parcel of land around the airport in Old Town, ME, allowing f... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Today, House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway (R-TX) issued the following statement concerning the exclusion of critical help for cotton and dairy farmers from the omnibus appropriations bill. “It is no secret that times are extremely difficult in farm and ranch country right now, with net farm income down 50 percent from where it stood just four years ago. It i... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Today, House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway issued the following statement upon the confirmation of Governor Sonny Perdue as the 31st Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). “Today is a great day for American agriculture. Secretary Perdue is a strong friend of America's farmers and ranchers, and I know he will work to ensure that agric... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Earlier this week, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) publicly released a report on the U.S. Agency for International Development's (USAID) implementation and oversight of additional food aid flexibility authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill. Under the 2014 Farm Bill, USAID is authorized to use up to 20 percent of Food for Peace (Title II) funds for administrative purposes, n... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Today, the House Agriculture Committee held a hearing to examine how the tax code impacts agricultural producers. Members of the committee heard from a panel of Members of Congress—including Rep. Kristi Noem (SD-at large) and Rep. Lynn Jenkins (KS-2)—from the House Committee on Ways and Means, the committee charged with crafting our nation's tax code. The Committee also heard fr... 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 »
