Oversight of USDA is a responsibility the Committee takes very seriously. Having an open dialogue with the department is important to ensure that USDA is operating in the best interests of our constituents and implementing programs as Congress intended.

It has been about seven years since the financial crisis and five years since the Agriculture Committee finished its work on Title Seven of Dodd Frank. We can look back now and see the results of that work.

As the Chairman said, land-grant universities play an important role in agricultural research, extension and educational programs. Research is vital to agriculture. USDA’s research, education and extension programs help increase productivity, prevent plant and animal disease, improve human nutrition and health, and discover and utilize new technologies.

Consumers increasingly want to know more about where their food comes from and how it is produced. I think H.R. 1599 satisfies that demand while also recognizing what we know about the safety of the foods that our farmers produce.

I rise in support of H.R. 2647, the Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2015. This is bipartisan legislation that will address some of the burdensome regulations that have arisen from legal challenges and help get our forests actively managed the way we need.

In the nearly 40 years since laws governing the export of crude oil were last visited the United States has significantly increased domestic oil production and is now the world’s largest oil producer. Studies have shown that lifting the current ban on crude oil exports would create jobs, many in rural areas.

For more than 60 years the United States has been the leader in providing food for those in need around the world. Partnering with private organizations, millers and shippers, the United States has delivered more than $80 billion in international food aid since World War II.

I cannot support TPA until the full scope of the pending trade agreement is made clear. I still do not have adequate answers about the agreement’s potential gains or losses, especially those to agriculture and rural communities.

I rise in opposition to the bill. H.R. 2393 is a premature reaction to the WTO ruling against the U.S. Country of Origin Labeling, or COOL, law. Rather than taking the time to find a workable solution, the Committee passed a COOL repeal just two days after the WTO issued its ruling.

Rushing a COOL repeal bill through the House is not the way to address the potential retaliation stemming from the WTO ruling.