WASHINGTON, Jan. 2, 2008 – R. Ronald Bosecker, Administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), will retire January 3, 2008, after nearly 43 years of service to American agriculture.

Dr. Gale Buchanan, USDA Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics (REE), announced that Joseph T. Reilly, currently NASS’s Associate Administrator, will serve as Acting Administrator until a permanent successor to Bosecker is selected.

Bosecker was appointed NASS Administrator in 1999. Prior to that, he served in various capacities throughout the Agency, including several leadership positions in Washington, as well as tours of duty in the Illinois, Ohio and California field offices.

During his tenure, Bosecker fostered the growth of collaborative efforts between NASS and other USDA Agencies that contributed to more efficient data collection and strengthened partnerships throughout the Department. He also significantly increased NASS’s outreach efforts to minority and limited-resource farm operators, thereby improving USDA’s efforts to deliver programs and services to previously underserved populations. In addition, Bosecker was instrumental in the development of new methodology that significantly improved Census of Agriculture results and led to the first Census that completed the coverage for all components of U.S. agriculture in each county.

“The work of the National Agricultural Statistics Service is critical to the efficient operation of American agriculture in the world economy. Ron’s leadership has strengthened the already excellent reputation of NASS for confidentiality, security, service and dedication to unbiased accuracy. I am grateful for his contributions to the excellence we strive for in the REE Mission Area and USDA,” said Dr. Buchanan.

NASS conducts hundreds of surveys every year and issues nearly 500 National reports annually covering virtually every aspect of U.S. agriculture. .