Governors Summit in Idaho and USDA Push for More Ag Research
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson with your Agribusiness Update.
**During the Governor’s Summit on Agricultural Viability in Idaho, American Farmland Trust announced a new initiative called “Thriving Farms and Ranches.”
The Summit explored the challenges of balancing the growth of cities and towns with Idaho’s valuable agricultural economy, as working lands are lost at an alarming rate.
AFT will work to ensure farmers and ranchers can be financially secure, invest in the future of their operations, and attract the next generation of farmers.
**Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins announced a number of coordinated actions that emphasize American agricultural research and innovation under the USDA’s National Farm Security Action Plan.
The plan will ensure ideas stay in America or with our allies, and not with hostile nations, and that we put American farmers and ranchers first.
These actions strengthen transparency around foreign ownership of U.S. ag land and ensure federal programs and purchasing preferences don’t support foreign supply chains.
**A Senate bill would rescind roughly $21 billion in unspent federal funds originally designated for broadband programs, setting up a potential debate over how the money should be used.
The legislation targets a portion of the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment, or BEAD program that’s not been allocated to states.
BEAD was created under the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to expand high-speed internet access in underserved areas.
