By Tyler Olson @ Shutterstock.com
The work of the Senate Agricultural Committee surely puts the interests of farmers well ahead of those of taxpayers. Chris Edwards of the Cato Institute wonders why and explains how the USDA has become bloated and wasteful. He writes:
Congress is scheduled to consider a major farm bill this year, which will reauthorize many U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs, including farm subsidies and food stamps. The legislation could cost $150 billion a year and so presents an opportunity to find budget savings and reduce the flood of red ink in Washington.
Spending reformers will have to battle the farm bill’s special interest logroll. This press release from Republicans on the Senate’s agriculture committee discusses “farmers’ priorities in the Farm Bill” and the need for “producer‐focused” legislation. But what about taxpayer priorities? And why not restraint‐focused legislation?
The top Republican on the committee, John Boozman, notes that the USDA has “over nearly 100,000 employees, 29 agencies and 4,500 locations in the U.S. and abroad.” 100,000! Boozman calls for better USDA management, but he should be asking why the bureaucracy is the size of a city.
Read more here.
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