FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 20, 2007

Goodlatte Comments on Johanns Resignation

WASHINGTON— House Agriculture Committee Ranking Republican Bob Goodlatte issued the following statement on the resignation of Secretary Mike Johanns:

“On behalf of my colleagues on the House Agriculture Committee, I would like to thank Secretary Johanns for his service to American agriculture. Secretary Johanns worked to maintain an open and cooperative relationship with the members of the House Agriculture Committee and his commitment to America's farmers and ranchers has been unwavering. His efforts to reopen markets for US beef in several Asian countries and presence at the negotiating tables in the ongoing World Trade Organization trade talks speak to his perseverance and dedication to creating new marketing opportunities for American agriculture products.

“In the run-up to the reauthorization of the farm bill, Secretary Johanns asserted his desire to participate in the process. The Secretary led a series of listening sessions and heard from hundreds of farmers and ranchers throughout the country. He and his team at USDA compiled and evaluated the feedback and built upon those evaluations to produce recommendations to the Congress regarding the farm bill. While the responsibility for writing the farm bill lies predominately with the members of the House and Senate agriculture committees, there were interesting ideas proposed by the Administration that garnered attention by our members. We may not have agreed with everything in USDA's proposal, but we certainly appreciated the effort the Secretary and his team put into establishing a presence in the farm bill process.

“The strength of Secretary's character and leadership was never more evident than in his actions following Hurricanes Rita and Katrina. In addition to losing property and possessions, many in the Gulf Coast region were left without access to basic food provisions. The Food Stamp Act authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to change eligibility and benefit rules to facilitate emergency aid. Secretary Johanns did just that and made sure that federal aid under his control was getting to those who needed it most.

“I have enjoyed working with Mr. Johanns in his capacity as Agriculture Secretary and American agriculture has thrived under his leadership. I wish him the best in his new endeavors and look forward to working with him in the future to ensure our farmers and ranchers can continue to produce the safest, most abundant food and fiber supply in the world.”

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