Agriculture & Rural Development Archives - Page 30 of 41

Fighting For Illinois’ Agricultural Economy

As a member of Congress from a rural district who comes from a long line of family farmers, I know how important our growers and producers are to our local economy. In western and central Illinois, we have some of the richest farmland in the nation, and agriculture is the top economic driver.

That’s why as a member of the House Agriculture Committee I’ve made growing our agricultural economy a priority.

When I was a new member of Congress, I was proud to work across party lines to pass the first long-term Farm Bill in years. This bipartisan legislation provided a stable and strong crop insurance program while maintaining funding for programs that feed hungry children and families across Illinois.

Then, in 2018, I fought to pass another bipartisan Farm Bill that included several key pieces of legislation I authored, including:

The Farmers of Tomorrow Act, which makes it easier for young farmers to buy land and put roots down in agriculture;
The Rural Health Liaison Act, which created a new position at the USDA that focuses on improving the delivery of health care to rural America; and
The Addiction Recovery for Rural Communities Act, which helps rural Americans better leverage USDA programs to combat opioid and heroin abuse.

But to keep our agricultural economy growing, we need to help our farmers export their products to new markets. That’s why I traveled to Cuba with the Illinois-Cuba Working Group and the Illinois Farm Bureau to help our farmers develop the right relationships so they can export more of our agricultural products.

It’s also crucial that our growers and producers have a seat at the table when negotiating new agreements with our trading partners. In August 2019, I set up a meeting at the Illinois State Fair between Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and the Illinois Farm Bureau to discuss agricultural priorities for the renegotiation of NAFTA—which later became known as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

I later cast my vote in favor of a strong USMCA, securing export markets for the agriculture sector with some of our most reliable trading partners and establishing a robust framework for future trade deals.

Additionally, over the past few years, we’ve seen the Trump Administration partner with Big Oil to dismantle the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS)—a move that has been devastating to our corn growers and biofuels producers alike. I’ve been working to restore the integrity of the RFS and to ensure that our growers and producers have the support they need to keep our agricultural sector strong and continue investing in the production of cleaner-burning fuels.

While we still have a lot of work to do to ensure a brighter future for our 21st century agricultural heartland, here are several recent examples of the work I’m doing.

More on Agriculture & Rural Development

Press Release

August 29, 2016

Congresswoman Bustos Announces USDA Economic Development Funding for Jo-Carroll Energy and Stephenson Service Company

ELIZABETH, IL – Today, Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17) was joined by officials from the United States Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development Agency to announce $126,665 in grants to Jo-Carroll Energy and a $770,000 Economic Development loan to Stephenson Service Company. These funds will be used to help these businesses continue growing and succeeding in our […]

Press Release

August 15, 2016

Bustos Lauds $3.1 Million USDA Investment to Train the Next Generation of Agricultural Innovators

ROCK ISLAND – Today, Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17) applauded the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for a program that will invest in the next generation of agricultural leaders. Last week, the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture announced the availability of $3.1 million to support a fellowship program for graduate degree (masters and […]

News

August 11, 2016

Bustos attends Stronghurst health fair during ‘heartland’ tour

Originally appeared in the Burlington Hawk Eye. STRONGHURST, Ill. — While visiting a health fair on her tour across west-central Illinois, U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos said she agreed with Hillary Clinton’s call on Congress to return to Washington, D.C. and provide funding to fight the Zika virus. “I would agree with that. I think we […]

Press Release

May 18, 2016

Bustos Statement on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Renewable Fuel Standard Proposal

WASHINGTON – Today, Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17) issued the following statement after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released a proposed rule for 2017 Renewable Fuel Standards: “If we’re ever going to break our addiction to foreign fossil fuels and become energy independent, we need to invest in American potential such as Illinois’ biofuel industry,” Congresswoman […]