The Department of Agriculture has scrapped a plan to close
713 of its 2,351 Farm Service Agency offices, despite an
announcement earlier that it was moving forward with the
plan even after the Senate amended the Agriculture
appropriations bill to block the closures.
“Our FSA state directors are engaging stakeholders, local,
and state congressional leaders to develop proposals that
will help us chart the course for the agency’s future,’
Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns had announced in spite
of the amendment.
Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Saxby Chambliss,
R-Ga., had scheduled a hearing at the urging of committee
members Jim Talent, R-Mo., and Mark Pryor, D-Ark.
However, USDA undersecretary J.B. Penn reportedly sent a
letter to Chambliss saying it would back off from the plan
in the face of mounting congressional opposition.
“We are very concerned about closing our FSA offices when
there has been little or no consultation with local offices
or our farmers and producer groups,’ Chambliss said in a
statement.
The FSA dates back to the 1930s when one in four Americans
lived on a farm, requiring numerous rural offices to
administer farm payments, something that has changed along
with farm programs.
Following the decision to scrap the FSA Tomorrow plan,
Johanns announced Teresa Coarsey Lasseter as FSA administrator.
“Teresa Lasseter’s experience at the local, state and federal
levels, combined with her personal involvement with agriculture,
provide her with tremendous insight and an ability to lead the
— FSA – into the future,” said Johanns.