Agriculture secretary teases intergovernmental initiative

Brooke Rollins sees the path to rural prosperity guided by federal, state and local governments. 

While addressing the March 4 General Session at NACo’s Legislative Conference, the new secretary of agriculture hinted at the Trump administration’s coming initiative for building on the population revival that rural areas have seen since the expansion of remote work in 2020.

“Restoring rural prosperity isn’t simply about bringing back jobs to these communities…it’s about restoring hope to our small towns, to our rural communities, across the country and protecting and preserving the quintessential American way of life,” she said.

The initiative will focus on ensuring efficient operation of rural development programs, creating new incentives to increase growth, seeking private sector options for offering satellite Internet, improving health care options, improving schools and encouraging housing development and exploring ways to move decision-making to local governments.

“We also acknowledge that the federal government is not always the best solution, and we will look for ways to restore more power to you,” Rollins said. “We’re turning that power to the local leaders. You know your communities better than anyone in Washington.”

She also stressed that passing a farm bill this year is crucial to rural and agricultural vitality.

Rollins invoked her Texas childhood while outlining her hopes for rural America over the next four years. 

“I experienced the sense of belonging every single day,” she said. “America’s rural towns have always been the beating heart of our nation. American towns gave our people a sense of belonging as independent and entrepreneurial as our citizens have always been, our small towns and rural communities remind us and our farmers and ranchers that they are never alone.”

Rollins’ mother, Texas Rep. Helen Kerwin, served as a Somervell County, Texas commissioner after working at the county library during part of Rollins’ childhood.

“I wouldn't be surprised if there is a big reason that all of you serve. I know I talked about my American dream story, but I think that the reason you’re here today is because we are all called to serve,” she said.

She stressed that the Department of Agriculture would work to help plug the economic holes leading to the decrease in family farms. She noted a 30% increase in the cost of farm inputs (such as fertilizer and fuel) and a 30% decrease in the price of row crops over the past four years. She suggested repealing the estate tax could help stabilize intergenerational farm ownership.

“That math does not add up for a sustainable robust future of agriculture in this country and especially for our rural communities,” she said. “When your average farmer is 58 and you’re losing an entire generation of the people who provide the food, who provide the fabric, who provide the backbone for these counties, we have to do something different.”

She also addressed the disappearing federal staffers in her agency who had been fired by the Department of Government Efficiency. A week later, two federal judges blocked the firing of thousands of federal employees across several agencies who had been hired or transferred in the prior two years. 

“This is not going to be a perfect scenario, there will be mistakes made as we right-size and downsize, but at the end of the day, the people that are closest to the elected officials, like you... know best how to spend that money, not the far-away federal government in Washington, D.C.; and this is the vision that President Trump effectuated over the last few years.”

She also assured attendees that executed contracts would eventually be honored.

“A lot of your farmers and ranchers, probably some of you as well that are in the agriculture industry, there are longstanding USDA farm programs and, in many instances, commitments that were made before we came and were inaugurated,” she said. “Those commitments will be preserved and so we are beginning to release [funding] and you can let your farmers and ranchers know that have already been promised, we’re working to review all these programs as quickly as possible and recently completed review and have begun releasing funds again.”

Despite spending the prior four years as CEO of the America First Policy Institute, Rollins pledged a nonpartisan welcome for county officials at the Department of Agriculture.

“As long as I have the honor of serving as your secretary of agriculture and working to effectuate President Donald Trump’s vision, I can promise you this: Whether you are a Republican or a Democrat or something in between, the doors are always wide open for you at the United States Department of Agriculture.”