Celebrating the Centennial Anniversary of Farm Credit

Floor Speech

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Mr. CUELLAR. Mr. Speaker, this July marks the 100-year anniversary of the Farm Credit System, and I rise today to commend the cooperative owners and employees for their continuing service and support in meeting the financial needs of rural communities and agricultural producers in the 28th District of Texas and across the country.

I was pleased to cosponsor House Resolution 591, introduced by House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway and Ranking Member Collin Peterson as well as the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee for Commodity Exchanges, Energy & Credit, Chairman Austin Scott and Ranking Member David Scott, and join my colleagues in celebrating the Farm Credit System for its 100 years of service.

Congress established the Farm Credit System through the Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916, which was signed into law on July 17, 1916 by President Woodrow Wilson. The Farm Credit System is comprised of independently owned cooperatives that are controlled by their borrowers. Each cooperative is therefore responsive to its borrowers' individual credit requirements and can continually adapt to the changing needs of our rural communities and agricultural producers.

Today, the Farm Credit System plays a vital role in the success of our country's agricultural sector, and the vibrancy of rural communities throughout the country. The Farm Credit System provides more than $237 billion in loans to more than 500,000 customers nationwide. In the state of Texas specifically, Farm Credit has issued over 47,000 loans, providing $9.5 billion in credit to farmers and other agricultural borrowers. 1,443 of those loans were made to people in the 28th District of Texas, totaling over $593 million in loans. In 2013, Farm Credit returned nearly $258 million to its borrowers in the state of Texas alone.

Farm Credit actively supports the next generation of agricultural producers by providing billions of dollars of funding to emerging farmers and producers, and providing financial support for organizations like 4-11 and Future Farmers of America. Additionally, Farm Credit finances reliable energy sources for farms and rural towns, clean water systems, and modern telecommunications systems that connect rural America with the rest of the world. By financing these vital infrastructure projects, Farm Credit supports the agricultural and rural communities in my congressional district and across the country.

Mr. Speaker, I am honored to recognize the Farm Credit System on the occasion of its centennial and extend my appreciation to the cooperative owners and employees for their commitment to providing innovative financial services to the people of the 28th District of Texas and to the nation as a whole.

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