Cherokee Nation
Good News! SUN Bucks is Available in Your Location
- Website: Summer EBT Program
- Hotline: 539-234-3265 or 800-256-0671 ext. 5275
- Email: wicsebtc@cherokee.org
WASHINGTON, DC, Dec. 21, 2018 – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today applauded the accomplishments made by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) over the past year. USDA has continued enacting President Trump’s goals of regulatory reform, streamlining government, and refocusing USDA to be customer oriented.
“In 2018 we have fought for American farmers, ranchers, and producers by delivering new and improved trade deals like USMCA and a re-negotiated KORUS agreement, provided trade assistance to farmers due to illegal trade retaliation, and helped our fellow citizens through devastating natural disasters,” Perdue said. “I am proud to say that every day at USDA we do our best to live by our motto to “Do Right and Feed Everyone.”
USDA made major strides in reigning in dependence on government assistance by beginning the rule making process to move more able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to self-sufficiency. With today’s strong economy and more jobs available than there are workers, USDA’s proposal helps ensure the 3.8 million individual ABAWDs receiving SNAP benefits get back to work and on the path to self-sufficiency.
USDA has significant roles to play in helping agricultural producers recover from hurricane-related damage and improve agricultural resilience to disasters. USDA provided a broad range of assistance to residents, agricultural producers and impacted communities at large following Hurricanes Florence and Michael in 2018. This assistance has included providing children affected by Hurricane Florence access to free meals, help Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients replace food lost due to power outages and provide disaster food assistance to low-income families affected by storms who would not normally be eligible for the regular program but because of disaster related expenses have need for assistance, assistance to producers suffering damage to working lands and cattle mortality, helped businesses and utilities by considering requests to defer principal and/or interest payments, and provided emergency farm loans to impacted operations. In addition to offering similar assistance following Hurricane Michael, USDA also held workshops in the area where the hurricane made landfall to help connect producers with USDA programs that can help them rebuild their operations. Finally, USDA provided subject matter expertise to the FEMA Emergency Support Functions responding to these and other disasters as part of the whole-of-government effort.
In the past year, the USDA Forest Service treated more than 3.5 million acres to reduce hazardous fuels and improve forest health through timber sales and prescribed fire. The USFS treated an additional 2.5 million acres to improve watershed conditions, ecosystems, infrastructure, and provide clean water for millions of Americans. Additionally, the USFS fought multiple major wildfires in 2018 conjointly with local authorities.
USDA successfully merged the Agricultural Marketing Service, Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration, and the Farm Service Agency’s Commodity Operations programs to better meet the needs of farmers, ranchers, producers, and consumers while improving customer service and maximizing efficiencies.
USDA stood up a new Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) mission area, which encompass the USDA’s domestic-facing agencies: FSA, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Risk Management Agency. The Department also launched the FPAC Business Center in 2018, which will eliminate redundant administrative support functions, including human resources, information technology, finance, procurement, and property management. USDA strives to be the most customer focused and customer-oriented department in the Federal government.
USDA also made other efforts to improve customer service across the agencies:
Through the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), the United States made major strides towards strengthening its highly productive and integrated trade relationship with its North American neighbors, ensuring preferential access for U.S. agricultural exports and solidifying commitments to fair and science-based trade rules.
USDA efforts to break down barriers and pursue export opportunities resulted in new or expanded market access for numerous U.S. farm products in 2018. These included dairy and poultry to Canada under the USMCA, as well as lamb and goat meat to Japan, beef and pork to Argentina, poultry to India and Namibia, lamb to El Salvador, beef and poultry to Morocco, eggs to South Africa and dairy to Turkey.
Foreign Agricultural Service staff around the globe assisted U.S. exporters in releasing hundreds of shipments that were detained at foreign ports. This ensured that more than $77 million of perishable U.S. products arrived safely at their final destinations. Among them were beef to Bulgaria, cherries to Taiwan, cranberries to China, lobsters to the United Arab Emirates and squid to Peru.
In 2018, USDA provided a range of assistance to farmers in response to trade damage from unjustified retaliation by foreign nations. To help ensure this assistance reaches those affected, FSA is facilitating the Market Facilitation Program to provide payments to corn, cotton, dairy, hog, sorghum, soybean, and wheat producers; AMS is managing a Food Purchase and Distribution Program to purchase up to $1.2 billion in commodities that will be distributed through nutrition assistance programs and child nutrition programs; and FAS is making available $200 million to develop foreign markets for U.S. agricultural products.
USDA provided over 2,000 items of technical assistance to members of Congress during the 2018 Farm Bill legislative process. In order to serve America’s farmers, producers, and ranchers to the best of our ability, USDA worked hand in hand with legislators to give technical assistance for dozens of programs affected by this year’s Farm Bill.
In October, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced that U.S. cotton is free — after more than 100 years — of the devastating pink bollworm. This pest cost U.S. producers tens of millions of dollars in yearly control costs and yield losses. Thanks to rigorous control and regulatory activities carried out by USDA, state departments of agriculture, the U.S. cotton industry, and growers, pink bollworm was eliminated from all cotton-producing areas in the continental United States. As a result, USDA lifted the domestic quarantine for pink bollworm, relieving restrictions on the domestic and international movement of U.S. cotton. APHIS and its partners also successfully eliminated feral swine from Maryland and New Jersey, and three additional States (Iowa, Maine, and Oregon) saw significant reductions in feral swine populations. Additionally, in FY18, APHIS declared two Ohio communities free of Asian longhorned beetle, in Monroe Township after a seven-year eradication effort and in Stonelick Township after a six-year effort.
To make school meals more appealing to children, reduce food waste, and ease operational burdens, USDA published a final rule allowing for more flexibilities in the food served through the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program. This action is part of USDA’s Regulatory Reform Agenda, developed in response to President Trump’s Executive Order to eliminate unnecessary regulatory burdens.
Secretary Perdue launched a USDA initiative to provide comprehensive and timely support to veterans interested in opportunities in agriculture, agribusiness, and in rural America. USDA wants to ensure veterans looking to return home, or start a new career on a farm or in a rural community have the tools and opportunities they need to succeed. The resources include a veterans website and a USDA-wide AgLearn curriculum to allow all employees to understand the unique opportunities offered to our nation’s veterans.
USDA is made up of 29 agencies and offices with nearly 100,000 employees who serve the American people at more than 4,500 locations across the country. While each mission area’s accomplishments may be found by using the links below, notable accomplishments are as follows:
#
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.