Rep. Hansen's Statement on House Republicans’ Fake Agriculture Budget
SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Today, House Republicans on the Agriculture Finance and Policy Committee passed HF1704, a partisan attempt at an Agriculture and Broadband Finance and Policy budget bill on a party-line roll call vote. The bill rolls back worker protections and cuts funding for locally sourced hunger relief programs.
This comes just days after the Minnesota Department of Agriculture confirmed that previously signed contracts with the USDA of $9,226,348 for school food purchasing and $4,045,518 for childcare institution food purchasing were canceled, as well as the $4,732,009 from the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program.
Representative Rick Hansen (DFL-South St. Paul), who will co-chair the House Agriculture Committee when the House power-sharing agreement takes effect next week, released the following statement following the bill hearing:
“This bill does not have 68 votes, and it will not become law. However, today’s vote does illustrate House Republicans’ misplaced spending priorities, unwillingness to work together, and willful disregard for the impacts of the Trump administration’s cuts to USDA.
“DFLers are committed to building an Agriculture budget that centers hunger relief, supports local food producers, and ultimately helps people throughout this state. Democrats have been ready to work together to solve the problems facing Minnesotans, but Republicans’ unwillingness to listen to the colleagues they need to vote for this bill shows how deeply unserious they are about governing during their temporary majority.”
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