(Nashville, TN, January 8, 2018) – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue will ceremonially present today the findings of the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity to President Donald J. Trump at the 2018 American Farm Bureau Annual Convention in Nashville, Tennessee. On April 25, 2017, President Trump signed an Executive Order establishing the task force “to ensure the informed exercise of regulatory authority that impacts agriculture and rural communities.” As Secretary of Agriculture, Perdue served as the task force’s chairman and identified over 100 recommendations to help improve life in rural America. The recommendations centered around these five areas: E-Connectivity, Quality of Life, Rural Workforce, Technology, and Economic Development.

Secretary Perdue issued the following statement:

“Since his inauguration, President Trump has made agriculture and rural America a high priority. On the day he swore me in to office, he tasked me with chairing the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity. With the voice of rural America leading the way, and in close collaboration with local, state, and tribal leaders, 22 federal agencies, offices, and executive departments accepted the challenge to make rural America great again. We traveled to 30 states, held two RV Tours covering over 2,200 miles, and most importantly, we listened to the people of rural America.

“While the task force worked tirelessly to identify solutions to the problems plaguing our rural communities, there is more work ahead. No doubt, rural America has struggled under burdensome regulations with no voice in Washington, but under President Trump’s leadership, and with the work of this task force, we can turn that around and restore rural prosperity once and for all.”

You may click HERE or on the video above to watch a recap of the creation and work of the Rural Prosperity Task Force

Background:

The Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity identified over 100 actions for the federal government to consider in order to achieve a vision of a better rural America. These actions include legislative, regulatory, and policy changes and were built around these key indicators:

You may click HERE (PDF, 5.4 MB) to read the Rural Prosperity Task Force Report in its entirety on the newly unveiled Rural Prosperity website, which includes a link for farmers, ranchers, foresters, and producers to submit comments and ideas on regulatory reform.

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