Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says now that Brooke Rollins has been confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as the nation’s Secretary of Agriculture, developing a new Farm Bill can begin in earnest.
“Working with her and using the power of the secretary of agriculture to push congress to get a five-year Farm Bill. We should have done that in ’23, didn’t get done; didn’t get done in ’24,” Grassley said during a conference call with Iowa reporters. “Now the Republicans have taken over…I think the five-year Farm Bill ought to be our number one priority working with Ms. Rollins.”
Rollins is now responsible for one of the largest agencies in the federal government, with a workforce of nearly 100,000 and a budget of over $200 billion. Some of that funding has been frozen by the Trump Administration, including $10 million for Iowa farmers who did conservation work on agland that was financed, in part, by USDA programs. Grassley said the Trump Administration is reviewing”all programs and expenditures” in the federal government — and it’s too early to say that $10 million is on the chopping block.
“I don’t think in the case of the conservation programs…that a review would prove that they’re not a worthwhile program,” Grassley said.
The $10 million is for Iowa farmers participating in USDA programs aimed at reducing runoff and improving water quality and soil health. Another $86 million for U.S. farmers under the Biden Administration’s climate smart initiative has been frozen as well.