Conaway Addresses FSA Group
U.S. Congressman Mike Conaway was in Garden City Aug. 1 for a brief meeting with Farm Service Agency county committees and executive directors from District 9. Jerry Harris, state FSA committee chairman, introduced Conaway to the 28 people present, calling him a true friend of agriculture regardless of his background in oil and gas. Harris said so far, Conaway has done everything Harris has asked him to do.
Discussing agriculture appropriations, Conaway said a $3 billion reduction in mandatory spending is necessary over the next three years. That is one percent of the total allocation, he said. A 14-member ad hoc committee will make recommendations Aug. 16 on where to make the cuts to reach that figure.
Most comments and questions from the audience concerned reductions in FSA personnel in 2005, and more that are expected in 2006. Most said they believe staffing is as low as it can go without losing the infrastructure that serves agriculture producers.
Conaway, while sympathetic to the audience’s concerns, said the problem is the same all across the board, with folks being asked to do more work and spend fewer dollars. He said each businessman must become more efficient to keep his own business profitable, and public agencies must do the same. He said greater use of technology should help.
“We can’t cling to the status quo as the reason to preserve the status quo,” he said. While admitting that consolidations may be necessary in order to spread resources, he advised FSA personnel to continue to “…work hard and spend dollars like they were yours.”