Tag: Department of Agriculture

Public Comments to Federal Agencies

I was recently involved in my first attempt at making a public comment to a federal agency, in this case The Department of Agriculture. It was a great learning experience, though I’m sure we could do a much better job the second time around. My first lesson was that we need to allow LOTS of time for any collaborative effort. We were hard-pressed to meet the comment deadline, and that seriously constrained our efforts.

This resource will help us (the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles chapters of the Climate Reality Project) do a better job next time. And there will be a next time. The opportunity for public comment is too good to pass up!

How to Submit a Public Comment to a Federal Agency

Progress Report-US

The whole point of this blog is that it’s a work in progress. Here’s my progreess so far on US policy. (Eventually I’ll get around to California and local policy.) First, I’m specifically interested in food production as it relates to climate. There are two federal bodies that deal primarily with food, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Only the first deals with issues that relate to climate, so I’ll be giving the FDA short shrift.

Legislation

  • Farm Bill – Passed roughly every five years, it’s the primary enabling legislation.
  • A trio of antitrust laws that seem ancient but are still very relevant given that the astonishing level of concentration in food production is seen by many as a problem:
    • Sherman Antitrust Act (1890)
    • Clayton Antitrust Act (1914)
    • Packers & Stockyards Act (P&SA, 1921)

Government Entities

Special Interests

I haven’t got very far with interest groups, but my sense is that there are lots of lobbyists and most of them are representing large business interests, not people whose only interest in food is eating it, or small farmers, or the rural communities that depend on farming. I see that as a problem. Open Secrets looks like a great site for getting up to speed on lobbyists. I’m sure I’ll be looking to if for help later.

That’s it for now, but I hope, in time, to expand all this… a LOT.

The People’s Department

The Department of Agriculture should renew its mission as “the people’s department,” as President Lincoln called it when he created it. That’s the argument made by Ricardo Salvador from the Union of Concerned Scientists and food writer Mark Bittman in a New York Times opinion piece last week.

Phil Lempert, the “supermarket guru” and food trends editor for NBC’s Today Show, describes the NYT article in this video in case you don’t subscribe or have used up your free reads.

Secretary of Agriculture

Kiefer Sutherland played Tom Kirkman, a Secretary of Agriculture who unexpectedly ascended to the presidency when everyone ahead of him in the line of succession was blown up.

Biden will choose a new secretary of agriculture to replace Sonny Perdue as head of the Department of Agriculture. It’s one of 15 departments in the executive branch of the U.S. government. Department heads, usually called secretaries, also serve as members of the president’s cabinet.

There seems to be some agreement that these three women are the top contenders:

  • Heidi Heitkamp
  • Marcia Fudge
  • Cheri Bustos

Other names that have come up are:

  • Krysta Harden
  • Amy Klobuchar
  • Collin Peterson
  • Chellie Pingree
  • Karen Ross
  • Michael Scuse

I wonder why Tom Kirkman didn’t get a nod. He did a bang-up job on Designated Survivor.