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USDA Under Secretary nominees commit to doing more with less

The Trump administration’s nominees for two key Under Secretary positions pledged to uphold USDA services with reduced resources during Wednesday’s confirmation hearing.

Senate Ag Committee Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar raised concerns about workforce reductions with Under Secretary of Agriculture for Marketing and Regulatory Programs nominee Dudley Hoskins.  

“The National Animal Health Lab Network Office has lost half its staff, and that’s about testing, quality assurance, and the Vet Services Office is currently set to lose 23 percent of its workforce,” she said.

Hoskins, who would oversee the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the Agricultural Marketing Service, committed to doing everything in his power to help protect American agriculture.  

“What I can point to is the Secretary’s comments publicly that she stated, APHIS will have the adequate workforce needed to address their mission and their mandate, which priority one is protecting the health and viability of US agriculture,” he replied.

Klobuchar asked Under Secretary of Agriculture for Research, Education, and Economics nominee Scott Hutchins how he would carry out a $600 million cut to ag research as proposed in the upcoming budget.

“Whatever funding is provided, we will make the absolute best use of it to benefit our farmers and ranchers and consumers, and that would be my firm commitment to you in this committee,” he testified.

Hutchins told lawmakers he wants to develop a set of national priorities and focus on goals that would channel talents towards solving some of the bigger industry issues and challenges.

USDA has lost 15,000 workers through a buyout, including 1,600 staff across its research agencies, eliminating nearly 20 percent of the Agricultural Research Service workforce.