Issue Position: Agriculture

Issue Position

Washington's 1st Congressional District has a thriving agriculture industry that plays a key role in our local economy. Our district in particular has some of the most fertile agricultural land in the Pacific Northwest. We have thousands of farms that grow a large variety of fruits and vegetables and we are home to a number of dairy farms.

As a member of the House Committee on Agriculture, I will be a tireless advocate on behalf of our local farmers and food producers. I will fight for the inclusion of programs that support specialty crops, cutting edge research, conservation of our forests, trade, and job-creating investments that ensure we have a vibrant local agricultural industry in western Washington. In addition, I will ensure that we update policy to support our dairy farmers.

I was proud to introduce a bipartisan resolution with support from Members of Congress around the country that emphasizes the importance of specialty crops. Specialty crops are a growing and increasingly significant part of agriculture, accounting for about half of the value of U.S. crop production in a given year, but they are not discussed nearly as much as some of the more traditional commodities.

Our nation's farmers depend on Congress to create sound agriculture policy and they deserve a long-term farm bill that gives them the certainty to plan for the future.

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