WASHINGTON - Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin C. Peterson of Minnesota released the full membership of the House Agriculture Committee for the 110th Congress today.
The House Democratic Steering Committee, which designates all committee assignments, has nominated twenty-five Democrats, including seven freshmen Members and eighteen returning Members, to serve on the House Agriculture Committee. The House Republican Conference has named 21 Republicans to serve on the Committee.
"I welcome the new and returning Members of the Committee as we begin a busy and important year for agriculture," Chairman Peterson said. "The Members of our committee represent a diverse cross-section of American agriculture. We have a lot of work to do, and the ideas and energy our members will bring to the caucus will be invaluable, particularly as we write a new Farm Bill."
The Agriculture Committee will operate with the same 25-to-21 ratio of majority party members to minority party members as the 109th Congress. The 25 Democrats who will serve on the committee are:
The 21 Republicans who will serve on the Committee are:
The House Agriculture Committee has jurisdiction over a wide range of agriculture and rural development issues. These areas include renewable energy, disaster assistance, nutrition, crop insurance, conservation, international trade, futures market regulation, animal and plant health, agricultural research, bioterrorism, forestry, and others.
A major responsibility of the Agriculture Committee in the 110th Congress is reauthorization of federal farm programs in the Farm Bill. The bill authorizes commodity support, agricultural trade, marketing, food assistance and rural development policies over several years. The current farm bill was written in 2002, and many of the provisions in that bill will expire this September.
Congressman Peterson was selected to chair the Agriculture Committee by the House Democratic Caucus last December.
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