Agriculture & Rural Development Archives - Page 56 of 56

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

January 22, 2013

Congresswoman Cheri Bustos Named to Key Agriculture Subcommittees

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17) was named to the Farm Commodities and Risk Management Subcommittee and the Livestock and Rural Development Subcommittee of the U.S. House Committee on Agriculture. Cheri was named to the House Committee on Agriculture on January 4th and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure last month. […]

News

January 18, 2013

In the Spotlight: As a member of Congress, looking out for farmers

By Congresswoman Cheri Bustos As a young girl growing up in central Illinois, few things made me happier than my family's regular trips to my grandparents' hog farm in Milford. I'd spend hours outside, playing with the baby pigs while taking in the sights, sounds, and yes, the smells. Ever since those days, I've had […]

Press Release

January 9, 2013

U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos Gets Named to House Committee on Agriculture

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Ill., released the following statement after being assigned to the House Committee on Agriculture. Bustos also has been assigned to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which had been announced last month. “Nothing is more important to me than standing up for communities across our region, and that […]