News & Views: Around D.C.

President Trump has been officially sworn in, and work has begun to vet his cabinet nominees in Washington. Among these nominees is Brooke Rollins, President Trump’s pick for Secretary of Agriculture, who appears poised for Senate confirmation following the hearing conducted by the Senate Agriculture Committee on January 23.

With Republicans having control of the House, Senate, and White House, strategic planning around budget reconciliation has been a significant topic of discussion. As these conversations develop, tax, trade, and energy policy are all receiving a great deal of attention already, and we fully expect farm bill policy and food regulations to receive a great deal of focus as well.

An economic assistance package for farmers was included in the final continuing resolution approved prior to Christmas break. The resulting payment will be nearly $70 per acre for rice farmers and $30 per acre for soybeans. This resulted from a substantial lobbying effort on behalf of Riceland Foods, USA Rice, and numerous other commodity groups and financial institutions. It was also the result of having Senator John Boozman (R-AR) as the incoming Chairman of the Senate Ag Committee.

Chairman Boozman is also actively working with Chairman Thompson to advance a new farm bill this calendar year, and we expect early legislative action in the coming weeks.

A bill regulating “field burning” by our farmer members has been introduced at the state level, and we are actively working to seek common ground on a path forward that addresses the issue without unduly burdening the agriculture community.

BEN NOBLE
Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer

ADAM SHEA
VP, Sustainability and Government Affairs

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