Brooke Rollins Confirmation Hearing

Senator Boozman (01:51):

Good morning. I'm delighted to call today's hearing to order. First, I'd like to congratulate two members of this committee who were instrumental in organizing the inaugural ceremonies that took place at the Capitol earlier this week, Senator Klobuchar and Senator Fischer, respectively, the chairwoman and ranking member of the Senate Rules Committee in the last Congress. For more than a year, the Joint Congressional Committee on inaugural ceremonies led by Senator Klobuchar put tremendous effort into the planning, organizing a traditional ceremony on the west front of the Capitol. As you know, those plans had to be set aside at the very last minute because of the bitter cold for the more intimate gathering inside the rotunda that we witnessed on Monday.

(02:41)
Thanks to our efforts and without missing a beat, our nation's tradition of peacefully transferring power continued and the President was sworn in on the 20th of January as required by the Constitution. Many thanks to Senator Klobuchar, Senator Fischer and the staff for successfully organizing and hosting one of our nation's most important civic traditions. I would also like to congratulate Senator Klobuchar on becoming the ranking member of our committee. I've worked closely with her over the years and look forward to continuing our partnership. I visited Minnesota with Senator Klobuchar in the spring of 2023 and met with farmers with the Gopher State in similarly cold weather that we're experiencing today, only it was in May. I greatly enjoyed the opportunity to hear those farm families. I look forward to hosting her in Arkansas in the not too distant future.

(03:41)
I would like to welcome the committee's members for those returning. Thank you for your continuing service for our four new members, Senator Slotkin, Schiff, Moran and Justice. Thank you for choosing to serve on the committee. I look forward to working with you and learning more about what is important to you and your states. Our committee established in 1825 is one of the oldest in the Senate. Our hearing room, which we will use in the future, is unique in that we don't have a dice but a table. We sit across from each other, not away from each other, symbolic and practical. I look forward to convening many meetings in Russell 328 in the coming years for us to work together and address the concerns of our farmers and ranchers and rural communities and those needing assistance.

(04:34)
As the chairman, my door is open to every member of this committee. The fundamental purpose of our committee is to solve problems and help our citizens. I welcome you to share your ideas, concerns and your solutions. Agriculture is not partisan. We all care about our nation's farmers and ranchers. The state of rural America concerns us all. We all believe that no American should be hungry. I intend for this committee to be highly productive in the 119th Congress. Working together, this year we will pass a farm bill that will meet the needs of our farmers for today and for the future. This morning we can meet to consider the nomination of Brooke Leslie Rollins of Texas to be the Secretary of Agriculture, Ms. Rollins, congratulations to you on your nomination. You have been nominated at a very challenging time for America's farmers. The cost for fuel, seed and fertilizer remain high.

(05:35)
Interest rates are also very high and continue to be high. Farm gate prices are low. Farmers everywhere are losing money on every acre they cultivate while farmers in certain parts of the country are losing hundreds of dollars per acre. Thankfully, Congress responded at the end of last year and provided a bridge to help ensure producers could plan again this year. Delivering this economic assistance to our farmers will be one of the major tasks you'll be faced as secretary, but as I mentioned, this was only a bridge. It was necessary because the safety net our producers have counted on in the past no longer works. I look forward to working with my colleagues in this room across the Senate and with you to help create a farm bill that meets the realities of modern-day agriculture. Beyond the economic strains our farmers and ranchers feel, I believe our producers want an improved relationship with USDA. They want to know USDA has their back and is helping them with the tools and support needed to successfully and properly farm and ranch rather than coercing them into production practices that don't work for their operations. They want new markets and new opportunities to sell what they produce. They want conservation programs to help with the issues they are facing on their farms. They want rural communities to have the infrastructure and the resources for a high quality of life. USDA with the right leadership can do all of these things. Beyond agriculture production, USDA is a land manager, research institution, food regulator, protector of animal health and rural lender. There is very little USDA doesn't touch or have an impact on. All of these resources and abilities can be used to improve the quality of life, not only in rural America but all of America.

(07:40)
As I've met and talked with Ms. Rollins, it's clear the needs of American farmers, ranchers, and rural communities will be her focus. It's also clear that she has the relationships across the new administration and an understanding of the processes in which decisions are made in the executive branch to best position our producers for success. I look forward to seeing her bring her considerable skills and her abilities to bear at USDA for the benefit of farmers, ranchers and rural communities. I now recognize ranking member Klobuchar for her opening statement.

Senator Klobuchar (08:20):

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and we welcome you, Ms. Rollins. Thank you, your entire family that seems to take up like 10 rows, as well as your FFA officers. It's kind of an incredible group there and your ag teacher. So I want to thank Chairman Boozman for holding this important nomination hearing. Thank you to our colleagues from Texas who are here. Senator Boozman and I have been friends and colleagues for years and as you noted, you came to visit my state. We didn't consider that cold day in May, we considered it a beach day with a touch of snow and I want to thank you for visiting with our farmers and our ranchers and our conservation and nutrition leaders in our state. I also look forward to working with you to be a voice for rural America. All of our colleagues on this committee are incredible voices for rural America.

(09:18)
I'm really excited. I've told our democratic leaders on this committee how excited I am about the people that are on this committee and I believe we're going to work really well together. I want to mention our friend and colleague, Senator Stabenow for her 14 years of leadership of this committee. She's now retired from this committee, but whether it was passing farm bills, standing up for a conservation programs or making sure there was food on the table, she was always at the forefront of the fight. I'd like to thank all of our returning members as well as the new senators on the committee that Senator Boozman mentioned, Senator Schiff and Senator Slotkin. They've been already really strong participants in all of these discussions we've been having. And Senator Moran as well as Senator Justice, thank you. We're looking forward to continuing the strong tradition of bipartisanship.

(10:14)
Ms. Rollins, again, thank you for being here. I enjoyed our previous discussions and I look forward to the hearing today and hearing from you about your plans for the future. I know you and your family, I just talked to your mom about it, have had a farm in Minnesota for years and I hope you will be visiting our state again soon. As you know, the Secretary of Agriculture, it's a voice for rural America within the President's cabinet. If rural America is going to prosper, it will be important to have a secretary who will address the challenges facing farmers and rural families who sees the importance of nutrition and conservation and who will work with us on a strong bipartisan farm bill. We on this committee have made progress on so many fronts. From strengthening crop insurance to improving voluntary conservation programs to the good work we have done on biofuels across the aisle, but there are still numerous challenges facing America, avian flu, struggling dairy producers, flooding, droughts, wildfires as Senator Schiff well knows, scarcity at food shelves and the lack of housing, child care and healthcare facilities in rural America.

(11:31)
As we discussed, I have concerns about some of the proposed policies from the administration and while I have always supported targeted tariffs, I'm concerned that major across the board tariff increases could hurt rural America. I hope that if confirmed that Ms. Rollins will make the case for sensible trade policy that will work for our farmers in rural America. We also need leaders of the USDA that believe in science and research, which is so critical right now. I know many of our members will be asking on that front. As a ranking member of this committee, I'm committed to doing what's right for rural America, which means finding common ground when we can, but standing our ground where we must.

(12:17)
In Minnesota, our prosperity depends on the strength and vitality of our rural communities. Farmers and livestock producers need access to safety net programs which with weather conditions threatening all the time, input costs and the like. And rural businesses can't spur innovation and create jobs without an available workforce, which I think is going to be an issue we'll be confronting this year as well as child care, health care, housing and broadband. I know this is true not just for me, but for all members of this committee and I look forward to the hearing today and to learning more about Ms. Rollins, your plans for the Department of Agriculture. Thank you very much and thank you to our colleagues.

Senator Boozman (13:03):

Today we have been joined by our colleagues from Texas to introduce our nominee. Thank you all for being here. Senator Cornyn, will you please proceed?

Speaker 2 (13:13):

Thank you. Chairman Boozman and ranking member Klobuchar, members of the Agriculture Committee. I'm delighted to be here along with my colleague, Senator Cruz, to introduce our friend Brooke Rollins to be the next secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This one is a no-brainer. Everybody who knows Brooke Rollins loves Brooke Rollins and you will too once you get to know her. I first met Brooke years ago when serving in state government in Texas, but it was when she was the policy director for then Governor Rick Perry that I began to see what a truly dedicated public servant she was and still is. Since this time, as you know from reading her resume, she's had quite an impressive career and so I'm delighted to be here today to help introduce her.

(14:07)
She was born and raised, as was pointed out in Glen Rose, Texas. For those of you who haven't pulled out your map to see where that is, it's about an hour southwest of Fort Worth and so she brings first-hand experience of the often difficult realities of farm life into the Department of Agriculture. She graduated from Texas A&M School of Agriculture Leadership Education and Communications. I thought I heard a whoop somewhere. Texas is home to nearly 230,000 farms and ranches more than any other state in the country, and one in every seven Texans works in an agriculture related jobs. This is critical to our state and to the nation as it's been pointed out. Brooke's Agricultural Roots will serve her well as Secretary of Agriculture to give farmers and producers from the Lone star State and across the country a clarion voice when it comes to President Trump's cabinet.

(15:14)
But Mrs. Rollins credentials go way beyond the day-to-day intricacies of farming. She's also a University of Texas law school graduate and a policy wonk. She will confess to that during this hearing today, and that's demonstrated by her years of service as general counsel to Governor Perry and her 15 years leading one of Texas's premier policy institutes, the Texas Public Policy Foundation, and it was during President Trump's first administration, she served as director of the Domestic Policy Council. Many of us worked with her closely there where she assisted Jared Kushner in that job and you know that position is responsible for coordinating the domestic policymaking of the White House and ensuring that decisions and programs are consistent with the president's goals and overseeing the implementation of the president's domestic policy agenda.

(16:14)
Since her time in the first Trump administration, Brooke has served as president and CEO of America First Public Policy Institute where she helped craft the agenda for President Trump's second term. I've worked with Brooke in a number of roles and seen her as she's helped advance bipartisan legislation both in Austin and here in the nation's capital, and I know she will bring that experience and that temperament to her job at USDA. It's a good thing because she has her job cut out for her. First, Congress has failed to pass a five-year farm bill and I know that's priority number one for this committee. So she'll have an opportunity to work with each of you to shape this critical legislation that farmers and ranchers across the country depend on. And as has been eluded, I think by Senator Klobuchar, the disasters that we've experienced throughout the country have hit farm country particularly hard. And I know she will work hard with you and all of us to make sure we provide an essential lifeline to our farmers and ranchers.

(17:27)
As Coach Tuberville knows, the Texas A&M football team of which Brooke is a devoted fan, says their student body is the 12th man who propels them to victory. I know Brooke is honored to step up now and become the 12th woman for the farmers and ranchers of America. I'm looking forward to working with her and with all of you to pass a farm bill and put farmers back where they deserve to be and that is first and foremost in our policy deliberations and I have no doubt that Brooke is exactly the person for the job to implement President Trump's agenda at USDA. So it's my honor to be here with all of you and her family and multitude of friends. Even her high school ag teacher is here. Everybody who knows Brooke loves Brooke and I know you will too as you get to know her, so thank you for allowing me to be here and say a few words by way of introduction.

Senator Boozman (18:28):

Thank you, Senator Cornyn. Senator Cruz.

Speaker 1 (18:31):

Thank you. Thank you, Chairman Boatsman. Thank you, ranking member Klobuchar, members of the committee. Let me start by saying what Senator Cornyn said a minute ago is absolutely right. This is a no-brainer. Brooke Rollins as a nominee to be Secretary of Agriculture is an extraordinary choice and I have absolute confidence that every member of this committee is going to be very, very happy working with her in that role in the next four years. I've been friends with Brooke for over two decades from when she was policy director for then Governor Rick Perry to when she led the Texas Public Policy Foundation, which became the preeminent free market state foundation in the country, to when she came to Washington to join President Trump to lead the Domestic Policy Council. To her more recent years leading the America First Policy Institute. At every stage she's proven herself to be a leader. She's proven herself to be an innovative policy thinker and she's proven herself able to bring people together to accomplish major objectives. All of those skills will serve her and the farmers and ranchers of America exceptionally well.

(19:52)
To know Brooke is to know she's an Aggie and all Aggies are members of a cult, which I say from a place of deep love, but I am convinced if you were to cut Brooke's hand right here, it would not bleed red, but it would bleed maroon onto this table. She brings that ferocity to everything she does. She brings creativity, she brings joy. Brooke is always smiling and she's smiling because she has a vision of where to take us. She grew up in a small agricultural community, Glen Rose, Texas. Her summers were spent at her family's Minnesota farm helping with the corn, potato and soybean crops, and I have to say, Brooke, the level of foresight to kiss up to the ranking member as a young child is impressive.

(20:58)
Her experiences in barrel racing, and by the way for everyone who knows barrel racers, yes, they're crazy and raising livestock for forage and Future Farmers of America installed in her a profound appreciation for the challenges and rewards of life in agriculture. Farmers and ranchers in America right now are facing extraordinary challenges. Challenges that are putting their livelihood at risk, putting their families at risk, putting the ability to provide food and fiber and clothing for the American people at genuine risk. The farmers and ranchers of this nation, the farmers and ranchers in the great state of Texas are looking to this committee for leadership and they're looking to the next Secretary of Agriculture for leadership.

(21:54)
In Texas and South Texas, we face historic droughts and yet our neighbor, the Nation of Mexico, is in brazen violation of the 1944 Water Treaty that obligates it to provide water each year to the people of South Texas. I have no doubt that soon-to-be Secretary Rollins will be a ferocious advocate for those South Texas farmers. Just as she is a ferocious advocate for farmers and ranchers in every one of your states and all across the country. She's going to be an extraordinary and even an historic Secretary of Agriculture, and I'm proud to join John Cornyn in supporting my friend Brooke Rollins, and I encourage you to do the same.

Senator Boozman (22:41):

Thank you, Senator Cruz. Again, thank you, Senator Cornyn for being here. I'd now like to recognize our nominee, Senator Brooke Rollins, to introduce some of her guests before I administer the oath and she gives her opening statement.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (23:06):

Good morning. Good morning everyone. What a joy to be here and wow, a little surreal and slightly overwhelming. The two gentlemen that were sitting up here, whom I've known, as they mentioned, for a long time, so I want to thank them. A few guests and I appreciate Senator Boozman, the opportunity to introduce them. My awesome mom right here whose new issue that all of you know that the oldest freshman legislator in Texas history, Helen Kerwin, raised my sisters and me by herself in that small town and PFAS is her big issue, so I know a lot of you are are certainly concerned with that. My incredible husband, Mark Rollins, we met the first week of our freshman year at Texas A&M, Senator Tuberville in 1990, 35 years ago, and our four incredible children, Luke, Jake, Anna, and Lily are here with me. Luke is the oldest. Luke, raise your hand, listen to your mother. Very good.

(24:05)
He is a sophomore at Texas A&M University in the Corps of Cadets and in fact left college station at 1:30 last night, 1:30 A.M. to drive all night, catch a flight in Dallas and be here this morning. So especially grateful to him and my other incredible children, even though they're all teenagers, Luke's 20, it has been the joy and most important part of my life being their mom, so what a joy to have them. My sister, Ann Blunser, my sister Helen Hubert, Eliza, my niece, they're all here. My sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Tim and Elizabeth Yagy, my incredible ag teacher who I would like to stand up. This is Mr. Gary Rosenbush, who put up with a lot from this FFA.

(24:51)
I've often said that the Future Farmers of America changed my life and put me on a course that frankly leads me to today, so Mr. Rosenbush was a big part of that. I also want to recognize a lot of people know that I take great pride in my short, but I think very successful life as a little league softball coach, so my daughter Lily was the catcher on the team, but most of the rest of the team also flew in last night. The Hot Tamales, everyone, from Texas are here. Thank you guys for being here.

(25:24)
My 1990, 1991 state FFA officer team from all parts of Texas. There were 10 of us, the other nine all came, ag teachers, insurance agents, workers of the land, they're all here and so what a joy to have my state FFA officer team here as well, if y'all want to stand, what an incredible inspiration. I know Senator, I could go on and on. I promise I'm going to cut this short, but one other thing, one other person, Pastor Jensen Franklin of Georgia who has been such an inspiration to me, flew all the way in from Free Chapel in Georgia to pray with my family and I this morning. So Pastor Franklin, I want to thank you as well, one of the great pastors of our time, pastor, thank you. I have so many Texas friends, other family that are here, but I'll wrap it there and just say, what an incredible honor to have all of them behind me today.

Senator Boozman (26:19):

No, that's great. That's wonderful. Please stand and raise your right hand. Do you swear or affirm that the statement that you're about to provide is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (26:37):

I do.

Senator Boozman (26:38):

Do you agree that if confirmed you'll respond to request to appear and testify before any duty constituted committee of the Senate?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (26:46):

I do.

Senator Boozman (26:48):

Again, congratulations on your nomination. You can have a seat and you're recognized for five minutes to give your opening statement.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (26:57):

Thank you, Chairman Boozman, ranking member Klobuchar and distinguished members of this committee. First, my thanks to President Donald Trump for his faith in me to lead the United States Department of Agriculture. His confidence fuels my determination to deliver. I also want to thank my dear friends and fellow Texans, Senator John Cornyn and Senator Ted Cruz, so graciously introducing me to this committee. I also obviously want to extend my sincere thanks to all of you, the United States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry for your careful consideration of my nomination and understand and perhaps most importantly, I want to thank and so overwhelmed at the honor to potentially serve the men and women who daily without pause or complaint provide our great nation and the world with the best food, fiber, and fuel.

(27:53)
Throughout the past several weeks, I have met or spoken with every Republican and Democrat senator on this committee, and I appreciate your insights, your concerns, and your very wise counsel. It is clear we all agree that farmers and ranchers are the cornerstone of our nation's communities, and I commit to you today that if confirmed, I will do everything in my ability to make sure our farmers, ranchers, and rural communities thrive. I also want to thank the many senators and representatives on Capitol Hill with whom I've had the incredible opportunity to work with these last two decades during my career in public policy. In my time first with Governor Rick Perry, then leading the Texas Public Policy Foundation, in my various roles in the Trump administration, the first one, and since 2021 in my role founding and leading the America First Policy Institute. Each of you cares deeply about the American people whom we all serve, and I promise my work will reflect that commitment.

(28:57)
Growing up in the small ag town of Glen Rose, Texas, y'all have heard this population then 1,200 people is where my story begins. Then my world revolved around the Future Farmers of America forage, and the endless cycle of baling hay livestock shows and rodeos that still today constitute the calendar of our small corner of Texas. That experience sent me to Texas A&M on an agriculture scholarship where I studied and majored in ag leadership and development. Then on to the University of Texas Law School where I graduated with honors and performed a federal judicial courtship and then of course to helm the policy shop of Texas governor Rick Perry. It was that I had my first direct leadership role in big state ag policy.

(29:47)
I had been in office serving governor Rick Perry for two plus years when I received a call, a small think tank of two or three staffers in San Antonio, I asked if I would be interested in being their new leader, and I answered that call as well, thinking as that my husband and I built our family that that would be helpful and a good potential opportunity to be a great mom, but also continue the fight for Texas. At TPPF over the next 15 years, we fundamentally redefined the mission of a think tank from just having ideas or writing about them in white papers to actually effectually changing policy for the people of our state. We engraged strongly during those 15 years with Texas rural and small town communities, giving them a voice in government that was too often denied. In short, we changed the game in Texas.

(30:40)
Changing the game is exactly why I accepted the invitation to join President Trump's first administration at the beginning of 2018. Everything that we had sought to do in Texas those last decades to make policy for real change for real Texans was being done in the first Trump administration, and I was so honored and excited to be part of it. I joined first to the White House Office of American Innovation as its leader. I then soon became the assistant to the president, in addition on strategic initiatives and eventually added the role of the director of the Domestic Policy Council.

(31:19)
In January 2021, exactly four years ago, we understood that President Trump's second term agenda would be delayed, so I had the privilege and the idea of establishing yet another institution of policy leadership and the America First Policy Institute was born. I currently serve as the president and CEO there. Thanks to President Trump and to all of you, I hope to have the opportunity to bring that level of passion and commitment to the USDA. I need not tell you of all people that this is surpassingly important because agriculture is surpassingly important to us as a nation. All Americans are important, but the farmer, the worker of the land who feeds all the others is amongst the most notable. Thomas Jefferson wrote that agriculture is our wisest pursuit because it will, excuse me, I don't want to get Thomas Jefferson's quote wrong, can't misquote Thomas Jefferson, because it will in the end contribute most to real wealth, good morals and happiness, and his wisdom holds true today. I fully recognize that if I'm confirmed, I am stepping into the role during one of the most economically challenging times in American agriculture history. With that in mind, I want to share with you as I close my top priorities for day one and then perhaps a longer term priority. First, we must ensure that the disaster and economic assistance authorized by Congress is deployed as quickly and as efficiently as possible. Second, we must work with the great men and women of USDA, the stakeholder

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (33:00):

Older communities and state leaders, my deep background in state policy, to immediately and comprehensively get a handle on the state of animal disease outbreaks. Third, we must immediately begin to modernize, realign, rethink the United States Department of Agriculture, responding to the clear needs and the desires of the American people as set forth so well by the President of the United States over this last historic week.

(33:27)
And finally, in longer term, we understand that serving all American agriculture and all the American people means ensuring that our rural communities are equipped and supported to prosper not just today, but tomorrow and the day after that, and the many tomorrows to come. This includes exploring improvements to our rural development programs, demanding strong and steady domestic and export markets for our beautiful agriculture bounty, eliminating burdensome and costly regulations that hamper innovation, ensuring our nutrition programs are effective and efficient, and putting in the work to make sure we have a healthy and prepared next generation of farmers, ranchers, entrepreneurs, innovators, and indeed all Americans. This is what we need for the next century of American greatness.

(34:21)
These are just four of my top priorities. Beyond these, I am dedicated and committed to providing all of you with the timely technical assistance that we will need to ensure that we have a Farm Bill that moves forward. My aim, after all, is the same as yours, the same that brought you to the Senate, the same that brought Donald J. Trump to the presidency again, and that is to serve the people in this great country. Thank you Senator and thank you Ranking Member Klobuchar.

Senator Boozman (34:52):

Thank you for your opening statement. As is customary, my colleagues and I would like to ask you some questions. Each senator will have seven minutes to ask questions during this first round. If we need an additional round, that will be five minutes. Before I ask my questions, I'd like to add a number of letters in support of Ms. Rollins. Nomination into the record in particular, I would like to highlight one letter signed by the Farm Bureau, the Farmer's Union, the National Council of Farmers' Cooperatives, and more than 400 other agriculture organizations supporting Ms. Rollins nomination without objection, solely.

(35:35)
In your written statement, again you alluded to and the testimony that you just provided, you talked about your focus, some of the things you want to … can you expand on that a little bit more? The first a hundred days, what can we expect?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (35:51):

I think the first a hundred days, sir, if I am so fortunate to be confirmed will be a fast and furious effort to ensure that we move that economic aid out. In fact, when I got the call from the president about this particular position, it was the honor of a lifetime to accept that call and to accept the nomination. But then about five minutes later, I started thinking about, okay, what do I do to make this successful and perhaps the best, most effective, efficient United States Department of Agriculture in history since President Lincoln first launched this department. The aid of the farmer's, top priority, animal disease, top priority. Ensuring that we begin to move toward President Trump's vision. I work for him, I am his cabinet member, but also working alongside all of you and so many of the conversations that we all had over the last four to six weeks from both sides of the aisle, from both Republicans and Democrats were very encouraging to me.

(36:50)
I believe that there is an opportunity, while there will be moments of disagreement, I have no doubt that there will also be many, many moments of agreement. Chairman Boozman, my thought is that we get in there and anyone that knows me and that has worked with me over the course of all these years, know that excellence is the, not only the goal but the expectation that we move with rapid speed to ensure it gets done. That we work 24 hours a day, seven days a week for our constituents, which is American agriculture, and that at the end of the day, this country and that community is thriving in a way perhaps they never have before because of the work and the foresight and the goals and the vision that I think is so important.

Senator Boozman (37:32):

Good. I appreciate you on several occasions bringing up the disaster assistance. This committee worked in a very bipartisan way to get that done. It was a big effort and it took a lot of work and again, we were able to get that done in a very bipartisan way, but that's what we've heard about from our farmers now is thank you for doing it, but we desperately need it so that we can talk to our bankers and try and figure things out from this last year where most farmers lost a lot of money, their path forward. So again, that, I think is music to all of our ears.

(38:14)
Trade is vitally important to American agriculture. Our abundant yields and high-quality crops help feed the world. Can you please describe how the president's trade agenda will prioritize the needs of American farmers and ranchers? If our trading partners unfairly target U.S. agriculture producers, how will the administration minimize the impact to our producers?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (38:38):

Thank you, senator, and I'm actually glad this is at the top of the next few hours because I think it is on the mind of every member of this committee and perhaps every member of the AG community across this great nation. The first thing I think that's important to note is in the last few years we have almost a 45 billion trade deficit for our AG products, so a key priority will be expanding access to these markets across the country. We've already been vision boarding, not to get ahead of the process, but I want to make sure I'm able to hit the ground running how it is, we begin to immediately effectuate bringing down that $45 billion trade deficit, and it's just up 42% in the last year. There is a deep recognition that corn prices are down 35% just in the last year as well, past two years, I'm sorry, and that in fact our farmers are hurting.

(39:33)
Regarding the president's tariff agenda, I think it probably comes as no surprise to anyone sitting in this room that he believes it is a very important tool in his toolkit to continue, or bring America back to the forefront of the world and to ensure that we have a thriving economy. But just as he did and we did in the first administration, he also understands the potential devastating impact to our farmers and our ranchers. And during that time, I have spoken with Secretary Perdue a few times on how that was managed into that team so I fully understand, and that we are prepared to execute something similar, if approved, if confirmed, but also working with the White House to ensure that we can close those holes for our farmers and ranchers moving forward under any sort of tariff execution in the next coming days, in the next few years, and that will be a top priority of mine.

Senator Boozman (40:29):

Very good. Hunger is an issue that we continue to face. My home state of Arkansas has the highest rate of food insecurity in the nation. At USDA, you'll be responsible for leading 16 nutrition programs that assist one in four Americans. These programs make up the vast majority of the spending at the department. In spite of these programs which have grown substantially over the last 20 years, the national foods' insecurity rate has hovered around 12% since 2001 even during times of economic prosperity. The goal of these programs is to provide temporary assistance to those in need, but the focus on moving families to a place of economic independence has been lost. Will you commit to reviewing these programs to ensure they help incentivize Americans to secure steady employment while still being able to trust that their federal supplemental assistance can be relied on in times of need?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (41:30):

Senator, I so appreciate your concern and focus on this incredibly important program. I think sometimes people on our side of the aisle are framed as those that don't care as much about the kids or those who are hurting or those from disadvantaged communities. I know I have spent my career working to ensure that every corner of America, that everyone has a shot at the American dream first with Rick Perry, then with my think tank, then with President Trump, then with the AFPI, the America First Policy group. And so I too, have a real heart for this work, and I've talked to many of you about that in your offices. That's perhaps driven by being raised in a small town by a single mom and we didn't have much. Now, we never participated in the nutrition program, but I am fully aware and have a heart for this work and for this community that is easy to make the commitment to ensure that we are doing everything we can, that this supplemental program continues on a course of being effective and efficient.

(42:37)
Having said that, it's also imperative to us that every taxpayer dollar that is spent in support of these programs, we fully understand that it is reaching its intended recipient, that that recipient is able to use it effectively and efficiently for true nutrition reasons, that we have a real health issue in this country. You all know this, I think four out of five children are facing obesity or close to it. The level of diabetes and chronic diseases continue to rise. So we together and myself, if so fortunate to be confirmed, will have a major role in all of the above, ensuring that these programs are serving those who need them and doing it effectively, but also ensuring that the taxpayers are being well-served, that the dollar that we take from my electrician in Fort Worth who has his own small business and then sending it to a family in need that that dollar is being used in the best and most effective way. That is certainly my commitment to you Chairman.

Senator Boozman (43:39):

Thank you. Senator Klobuchar.

Senator Klobuchar (43:42):

Thank you very much Mr. Chairman. Again, welcome Ms. Rollins. As we both noted, the Chairman and I, this committee has worked together and all the members know this on a bipartisan way to pass Farm Bills in the past, improve the farm safety net, stand up for conservation, nutrition, food security. Will you be a force for working with both sides of the aisle?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (44:06):

Thank you so much, Senator Klobuchar for that question. And it is exceedingly important to me that we deliver for American farmers and ranchers, exceedingly. And I have already begun to lose some sleep over how to make that happen in a way that is productive in supporting your work. And I have a long history of working in a bipartisan manner. It may not be at the forefront of my bio or my resume, but I worked with many of you in the last administration on the First Step Act, which I believe was perhaps the hallmark of President Trump 1.0 in bipartisan work together. I sat in an office for many hours with Senator Durbin, Senator Grassley, Senator Booker, Senator Scott, and many others from both sides as we hammered out how to solve the criminal justice challenges that our Bureau of Prisons is facing and I hope to bring that same skill set and perhaps knowledge base and relationships to this effort as well.

Senator Klobuchar (45:12):

Thank you. I appreciate that you mentioned animal disease as one of your lead priorities as well as the disaster economic assistance. As you know, and you and I discussed this, since 2022, the most recent outbreak of avian flu has devastated poultry producers, spread to dairy cattle, resulted in at least one death, but we're starting to see increases in certain prices attributed to that. If confirmed, how will you ensure that farmers have the resources they need to combat the spread of this virus? What is your plan in?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (45:50):

There is no doubt that what the community and whom we all work for, that community, not just America, but the entire world relies on for an abundant, safe and secure food supply, and just learning of the devastation in Georgia just over the last few weeks with the poultry outbreak and the depopulation there of our poultry. Of course, to your point about dairy, it's been affecting some of the dairy herds I believe across 16 states. There is a lot that I have to learn on this and if confirmed, this will be, as I mentioned in my opening statement, one of the very top priorities.

(46:32)
We are hyper focused on finding the team right now. I'm sure they're already working. I have obviously respected the process and not gotten too involved, but I know that the current team and the future team will be working hand in hand to do everything we can on animal disease. And Senator, if I may add one more thing. My deep background working in state policy included working very closely with governor's offices and AG commissioners across this great country. In fact, in the last White House I took it upon myself, which is where I met a few of our governors who are now here, to work closely and in concert and aligned with both Republican and Democrat leaders from the states.

Senator Klobuchar (47:17):

Thank you. I really appreciate that. We have seven minutes. I'm going to go a little quicker here.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (47:20):

Yes ma'am.

Senator Klobuchar (47:21):

I will note that just yesterday the administration announced they will halt external public health communications from the CDC on these avian flu animal diseases. And these important announcements have helped keep producers up to date with the latest information on disease spread, health of workers. And while I know that wasn't under the USDA, I just urge you to talk to them about that, we're concerned. Biofuels, and I appreciated our discussion on that. While you served as the CEO of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, your organization was often critical on biofuels including ethanol and as you know, we have worked really hard to make this so we don't just have one fuel, that we have options here, including with Senator Ernst and Senator Fischer and Senator Grassley, Senator Thune, many others. What role do you believe biofuels play in our domestic energy production? How will you continue to promote the production of these fuels as secretary?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (48:24):

Thank you and I appreciate you bringing that up. It's my understanding that those reports were written over a decade ago. I haven't seen anything more recent. Texas Public Policy Foundation puts out almost 900 to a thousand pieces of content a year. I did not author that specific piece. But to be clear, there's no doubt coming from Texas, I was a massive defender of fossil fuels and the importance of fossil fuels in the energy independence and energy dominance narrative. Clearly, I've spoken with so many of you on both sides of the aisle on this issue. I will be a secretary for all agriculture. It is really important to me that we continue to defend and elevate and honor all sources of fuel. My former boss and current boss and his current energy dominance plan included biofuels as an important piece of his agenda so I really look forward to continuing that.

Senator Klobuchar (49:18):

And I know your family, based on the forms, I appreciate you getting us those forms, that your family has significant financial interest in the oil industry, will these interests motivate decisions you make at the department, especially when they impact your family's financial holdings?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (49:37):

Senator, I can promise you this and I know you and I've met a few times through the years, I've had more in-depth discussions but not as many as I would like, hopefully a lot more in the future, but I can promise you this, anyone that has ever worked with me will tell you even to the detriment of organizations, I have run detriment financially to my potential family that I have never, not ever, made a decision based on financial interest ever and that certainly will not begin now.

Senator Klobuchar (50:06):

Thank you. You discussed briefly with Senator Boozman the export markets. I also appreciated you mentioned that in your long-term focus on exports and as you know during the first Trump administration, we heard resounding calls from farmers that they want trade, not aid, some exact words. I'm remembering they want to grow their market and not just give government payment. We've worked hard on this committee to help farmers build markets here and abroad. Senator Hoeven and I have set up a rural export center in fact and Ms. Rollins, how would you work with President Trump, the office of the U.S. Trade Rep and others within the administration to ensure that they understand the effects of potential retaliatory tariffs on American farmers, and how will you help them manage this risk and beyond just getting extra payments to make up for it, will you be a voice to make sure people understand the importance of exports for rural America? And it's not just farming, it's also manufacturing and the like.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (51:11):

No, that's correct. The, I believe, extraordinary value that I potentially bring to this table is having served in the last White House for three years right alongside President Trump. I believe I may be the most well versed in how the inter agency process works of all the cabinet of how the inter agency process works, of how the discussions are handled of what the Oval Office meetings look like and how to ensure that at every corner, that my team, that our community, that what we all represent together is at the table fighting for what we believe is necessary for these communities.

Senator Klobuchar (51:53):

Okay, thank you. And I have some important questions for the second round here on conservation and nutrition and I know my colleagues will be asking them as well. Thank you.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (52:03):

Thank you.

Senator Boozman (52:04):

Senator McConnell.

Senator McConnell (52:07):

Thank you Mr. Chairman. Congratulations on your nomination.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (52:12):

Thank you.

Senator McConnell (52:12):

I appreciate you coming by the office. I had a chance to tell you then that Kentucky agriculture is a little different. We have 75,000 farms, but most of them are small. We're also the number one beef cattle state east of the Mississippi. People don't generally associate Kentucky with that. I want to echo what others here have said about trade. I went over to the trade representative on the floor of the house. We were there for the big speech and introduced myself and I said, "Do you have anything to do?" And she basically didn't have an answer. It seems to me that trade has become a word for a lot of Americans that implies exportation of jobs. In Kentucky, we think of trade as exportation of products and it's an extremely important part of what we do. I think both of the candidates in the last election shied away from this issue as others have said, give us some hope that maybe we can get back in the trade business. We would need trade promotion authority, which we currently don't have, but I'd be interested in your thoughts further about this.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (53:49):

Yeah, thank you Senator McConnell, and it was an honor to be in your office. Talk a little bit about Kentucky Bourbon and a few other important things. It's the first time I've ever heard, I think, anyone say that President Trump has shied away from anything. I don't specifically have or recall anything specific about him not talking about trade other than perhaps to your point that our country and especially our AG community is in a tough spot right now with regards to exports and moving our products out. I know that the USMCA is back up for negotiation along with other trade agreements. And here's what I am very encouraged about Senator, and I hope it perhaps gives you some encouragement as well.

(54:33)
In my now almost nine years, maybe eight years with President Trump, at the end of the day, we all know him to be the consummate deal maker. And I believe that that skill and that intense focus on making deals for his people, not only for America but for the AG community that supported him at 90% since really the very, very beginning, I think 338 counties out of 344 agriculture counties voted for him, he knows that these are the people that have been with him the longest. And I sincerely believe that if I do my job, and in working with all of you, to ensure that the White House and that our partners across the agencies have all of the data that they need, while at the same time we're working across the world to bring in new trade partners to expand access for new trade products and for all, whether it's the specialty crops or the row crops or the livestock industry, I believe, as the president mentioned in his inaugural address that we are embarking on a golden age, and I also believe this is going to be a very, very big part of that.

Senator McConnell (55:45):

Okay. I want to shift to something Kentucky specific that we discussed in the office. I want to bring it up again. Back in 2020 through the appropriations process, I managed to allocate $65 million for an agricultural research service lab at the Kentucky College of Agriculture. That was four or five years ago. Nothing has happened yet. So what did happen? Well, there were a number of different regulatory tripwires that got injected into the process. And in meeting those, trying to meet those regulatory tripwires, slowed everything down, everything down, everything down. I want to see construction begin. The money is there. What can you tell me to give me hope?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (56:48):

We did discuss this. And again, another passion of mine that has been mentioned is my love for Texas A&M and the AG school, and the research facilities. I am really excited to get knee-deep, waist deep, neck-deep in these facilities across the country. I know we also had discussions with some of the other senators on this committee that they have some similar concerns with some different facilities that they would like to see move a lot more quickly. Senator McConnell, I commit to you that we will immediately begin digging in on what is happening. One, a big part of my portfolio in the last administration was the president's deregulation agenda and understanding how certain regulations and rules hampered important projects from moving forward and opening up markets, etc. So I actually believe that with the right team in place and with your quick confirmation of some of those undersecretaries that we'll be able to dig in, figure out what's happening, work with you and others from Kentucky to figure out what's going on and figure out how to move this forward.

Senator McConnell (58:03):

Finally, I would just say the previous administration was big on regulations across the board. I think they all ought to be looked at in terms of the impact on the economy, and I think that's what the new administration intends to do. Thank you.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (58:25):

Thank you, Senator. I agree with that and look forward to working with you and others on that.

Senator Boozman (58:30):

Senator Bennet.

Senator Bennet (58:33):

Thank you Mr. Chairman. And I want to thank you and the ranking member for your opening statements. Both of you together, I think, captured the spirit of what this committee is supposed to be about in a Congress where we have not worked well together. And I just want to say how much I appreciate your leadership today, so the two of you. And thanks also for mentioning Chairman Stabenow who did a great job here for a long period of time. Ms. Rollins, congratulations to you. You mentioned in your answer just now to Senator McConnell, this is actually not a question that I was going to ask, but since you mentioned to him, you said, "We all recognize agriculture is in a tough place when it comes to exports." We do all recognize that. Could you elaborate more on that? We'd love to hear your perspective on the hole that many of us feel that we're in right now as we get ready to think about what the trade policies are going to be of this administration and of the country.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (59:36):

Thank you, Senator Bennet, of course, and loved our conversation about your beautiful Colorado.

Senator Bennet (59:41):

Thank you. Come back or come anytime.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (59:45):

I would welcome that. We do spend some time there in the summers as good Texans do, getting out of the heat, but I'll look forward to seeing you next time. In the last handful of years, we've gone from not having a trade deficit in our agricultural communities to having a $45 billion trade deficit. Of course, that has led to many challenges including food inflation. And I know when I've heard President Trump talk about his priorities, the first is the border, which I'm guessing we'll get into at some point. But second was food inflation. And so there are many tools in our toolkit both through USDA and expanding markets, which are all intertwined to begin immediately to work, to bring that deficit down and hopefully soon, get it to zero. My commitment is to-

Senator Bennet (01:00:37):

I would say-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:00:39):

Yes, sir.

Senator Bennet (01:00:40):

… that deficit we know is being caused by a strong dollar. It's being caused by competition from Brazil. It's being caused by limitations on our beef supply. It's being caused by prices that are going up. I mean, I don't think these particularly are failures in trade policy. It's making it harder for us to export, which is what Senator McConnell's concern was, which I share. And I think that all of us understand. And actually I will say there are many ways in which I'm sympathetic to some of the trade policies that President Trump is trying to advocate for, but agriculture is already in a tough spot for those reasons, I think, largely, and we don't want it to be in a tougher spot as a result of what happens here. And I think when you were in my office, you talked a little bit, and this is going to be the easiest question that you get, and I hope you only take 15 seconds to answer so I can go on to the next step.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:01:44):

Yes, sir.

Senator Bennet (01:01:45):

Which is, what is your responsibility as the Secretary of Agriculture to go into the Oval Office and say you haven't thought through the unintended consequences that are going to flow to American agriculture if you pursue these trade policies?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:02:03):

Senator, in 15 seconds? My role is to defend, to honor, to elevate our entire agriculture community in the Oval Office around the table through the inter-agency process, and to ensure that every decision that is made in the coming four years has that front of mind as those decisions are being made.

Senator Bennet (01:02:20):

And I agree also with what Senator Klobuchar said is that what we've heard from our farmers and ranchers over and over again is they want to be able to do the work. They want to be able to export. They don't want to solve this problem by getting aid to make up for what they should have been able to send to Asia and other kinds of places. The only growth that my farmers and ranchers can see in the foreseeable future, which is to say their lifetimes, is by growing our exports of agriculture. So I appreciate your understanding that and-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:02:51):

I agree.

Senator Bennet (01:02:52):

… we're counting on you if you're in this job to be that advocate. We also had the chance when you were in my office to talk a little bit about something that I've focused on here the entire time I've been on this committee, which is the state of our national forests throughout the American West. As you know, and I know you know this, they're incredibly important to us because every single community that we have, no matter how big or no matter how small, every single farm and ranch that we have is downstream from these snow packs and downstream from these national forests and the condition of these national forests. And they're national forests for a reason. They are national forests. The condition is just untenable and dangerous. I told Chuck Schumer, he doesn't necessarily agree with me, but I've told him over and over again that these forests are more important infrastructure from our perspective than the Lincoln Tunnel is to New York.

(01:03:50)
If the Lincoln Tunnel is closed, there are other things you can do. He may not agree with that. But if we lose our water, we lose everything in the West. And Coloradans are watching what's going on now in California, Senator Schiff, with broken hearts because of what is happening there. We've seen it happen at a much smaller scale, but still universal in our state with things like the Marshall Fire. So I wonder if you could talk a little bit about the importance of these national forests, how you think about the stewardship here, whether or not we should be considering the fact that if we wait to fight these fires, it costs $50,000 an acre to fight them, whereas if we do the work on the front end, putting people to work in our national forest, it can cost $1,400 an acre to do it. I'd love to hear your perspective on that.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:04:50):

Senator. I am so glad you brought this up, and I believe, and Senator Schiff and I spoke about this obviously in his office a week or two ago as they were facing an unimaginable experience in California. And I am really excited to tackle this problem. I don't pretend to even know the beginnings of it. I've just started studying it. But it seems to me, and after speaking with you and others on the committee and beginning to learn, first of all, I think we have a great undersecretary identified and announced, the quicker we can get him confirmed, the quicker we can really begin this hard work ahead. And my husband's family owns a little cabin right on the edge of a national forest in Gunnison, Colorado so I too have spent about the last 25 years enjoying the national forest and the extraordinary beauty that they bring to our people. But the water is a massive issue. And you and I talked about that 40 million people depend on the water that is under your land in Colorado. And I do believe, and maybe people call me a pathological optimist, but

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:06:00):

Maybe the pathological optimist in me sincerely believes that we can fix this and we can fix it fairly quickly with the right team in place and working with all of you who have watched it, been frustrated by it, and want an answer.

Senator Bennet (01:06:13):

[inaudible 01:06:18].

Chairman Boozman (01:06:19):

Senator Hoeven.

Senator Hoeven (01:06:22):

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I want to thank or express to both you and to the ranking member that I think we're fortunate to have both of you in role as chairman and ranking member. We've worked on many things in the past together and I very much look forward to working with you in the future. And again, feel this committee is fortunate to have both of you in these roles. Welcome.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:06:47):

Thank you.

Senator Hoeven (01:06:48):

Ms. Rollins, good to see you again. Thanks for coming to visit at the office. You have an awesome family.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:06:52):

The best. The best.

Senator Hoeven (01:06:53):

Yeah. So thanks, of course, for your husband being here and your kids. And of course, no one will ever love you the way your mom does.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:07:00):

That's true.

Senator Hoeven (01:07:01):

So pretty awesome having mom.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:07:03):

She's missing an important vote in Texas today to be here to sit behind me. So, really grateful, really grateful.

Senator Hoeven (01:07:09):

No. It's great. And you have a fantastic family. And we mentioned all this talk about A&M. Did I tell you when we talked that my wife went to UT? I don't know if I did or not.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:07:21):

We did and I had my sincerest condolences.

Senator Hoeven (01:07:24):

Yeah. So, that's kind of fun. And I'm wearing my North Dakota State University tie today, home of the Mighty Bison. I know we talked about them, but we do have an incredible school of agriculture at North Dakota State University.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:07:40):

Yes, you do.

Senator Hoeven (01:07:40):

We're doing some awesome things. We have a project called Grand Farm, Sonny Perdue came out and actually cut the ribbon on it. And we have a partnership between ARS, NDSU, and Grand Farm on precision agriculture that's incredible. And so I'm going to invite you to come out to our state right away and see what we're doing. Would you commit to coming out and seeing what we have and meeting our folks?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:08:05):

I would love to come visit and I have said, I think it's actually been reported in the press that if you can get me on a horse, I'd love to ride a horse as we're all working on all of these issues across the states and really look forward to that. Only if you ride with me though, Senator Hoeven.

Senator Hoeven (01:08:20):

Oh, absolutely.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:08:20):

Okay.

Senator Hoeven (01:08:21):

We will absolutely ride. One of my sisters raced barrels. My job was just to get the horses in the trailer, which is sometimes easier-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:08:28):

Harder than racing barrels.

Senator Hoeven (01:08:29):

Yeah, sometimes easy, sometimes not depending on the horse.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:08:32):

It's true.

Senator Hoeven (01:08:33):

But we'll do it.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:08:34):

That sounds great.

Senator Hoeven (01:08:35):

I'm so glad to hear that. And of course, love your background in ranching. My grandfather's a cattle rancher. Back in the good old days when we raised Hereford instead of all the Angus.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:08:44):

Love Herefords.

Senator Hoeven (01:08:46):

Farm bill. Will you commit to work with us to get a farm bill? And it is so incredibly important, in agriculture, as you know, we have a system of family-based farmers and ranchers across this country. 16 million people involved in agriculture in some way, shape or form versus look at all these other industries that are concentrated. But we have this system of family-based farmers and ranchers, businesses, small businesses, and what they produce for every single American every single day is the highest quality, lowest cost food supply in the world. Americans have better choice, better quality, and spend less of their budget on food than almost any other developed country. That's what we have because we have good farm policy and that means affordable crop insurance and that means a counter cyclical safety net that works. Keeping the farm in the farm bill. Will you commit to help us get that? We're past due. We need to get it done. Will you commit to help us get it done and get it done in the way I described?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:09:51):

Yes, sir. And again, maybe the pathological optimist in me, but I've talked to both sides of the aisle, the complexity, the challenges in the last year or so of reauthorizing it. And I hope that I can be a force multiplier and I hope what I bring to the table is the opportunity to work alongside both sides to get us where we need to be for our farmers and ranchers and some security, some understanding that the net is there and that the loans are there and that the insurance is there and that they can continue to be the best producers in the world for the world food supply. So, I really look forward to that. Obviously providing you the technical assistance that you need to be able to do your job, but also if asked or if called to help in any other way I can to get this done.

Senator Hoeven (01:10:42):

I think your relationship with President Trump's going to be incredibly important in that effort. We already saw it as we worked on the disaster piece that we included with the extension of the farm bill. Will you commit to work closely, not only with this committee, but with our AG Aprops committee as we administer that emergency assistance?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:11:04):

100%, yes. And whether that's at 2:00 in the morning, 4:00 in the morning, midnight, I am always available and will work harder than anyone to ensure that you all have everything you need across the capitol.

Senator Hoeven (01:11:13):

President's help there was important.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:11:14):

Indeed and.

Senator Hoeven (01:11:15):

I want that acknowledged on the record. And also tariffs. We went through this in President Trump's first term, worked with Sonny Perdue when China targeted our farmers and ranchers. We want markets. Talk for a minute about, I mean we look at tariffs as a way to get markets for our farmers and ranchers so they can compete on a level playing field. We did have to do the MFP. We worked with Sonny to do that last time. Give me your thoughts on how we're going to approach this.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:11:49):

As I mentioned, when I got the call about this particular position from the president, we were driving our motor home across Mississippi on our way to Auburn for the Texas A&M Auburn-Alabama game. I clearly wasn't expecting a call from the president at that moment, but when it came and when we talked about this job, I celebrated, prayed with my family, and then immediately began understanding what happened last time and ensuring that we have the right team on the field that can immediately execute to ensure that we're solving for these major challenges. And so, the undersecretary that will be coming before you, hopefully very quickly, Mr. Chairman, helped run that program under Sonny Perdue. The staff that he's building out, if confirmed, is the same team that did it before with the idea that we can't reinvent the wheel, we've got to be able to move quickly.

Senator Hoeven (01:12:42):

Well, that's good to hear because we did have to do some things legislatively to get it rocking and rolling. And we did work with Fortis and the other guys, and so we look forward to working with them again so that whether it's China or anybody else, we're going to defend our guys and we're going to make them play fair because on a level playing field, our farmers and ranchers outcompete anybody in the world.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:13:00):

Yes, sir. Yes, sir.

Senator Hoeven (01:13:02):

On just a couple others. One is the sugar industry's huge in my state. That involves trade directly, as you know. Will you commit to work with me on that industry? And Senator Klobuchar also shares that same concern, I think.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:13:17):

Yes, sir. And in fact, Senator Smith and I discussed it as well when I met with her-

Senator Hoeven (01:13:21):

And Senator Smith. Yeah, and absolutely Senator Smith as well. Sorry.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:13:23):

Yes, I know. Don't leave out Senator Smith, my Minnesota senators.

Senator Hoeven (01:13:27):

I want to emphasize Senator Smith shares that concern.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:13:30):

Yes, yes. Thank you, Senator. Yes, 100%. And in any of these industries, I'm here and will always be available.

Senator Hoeven (01:13:37):

We've also worked with your potential deputy secretary as well, and I want your commitment that both on behalf of yourself and him that you will work with us on access on the forest lands, which as you know, we have ag and many other interests out there on these forests, on the national grasslands. Access is an issue. We need your help. Will you commit to help us on that?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:14:02):

100%.

Senator Hoeven (01:14:03):

Thank you.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:14:04):

Yes, sir. Thank you Senator.

Senator Hoeven (01:14:06):

Appreciate it.

Senator Klobuchar (01:14:07):

Thank you very much. Ms. Rollins. Senator Boozman had to go vote. And as you noted, which I appreciate, we have not one, but two Minnesota senators, we're blessed to have Senator Smith with us. Senator Smith.

Senator Smith (01:14:17):

Thank you so much, ranking member. And I want to just share my congratulations to you and to Chair Boozman for leading this committee. I love serving on this committee. I love the bipartisan spirit that we have. And I even love Senator Hoeven who always forgets that I care about sugar in Minnesota.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:14:34):

She even loves you, Senator Hoeven.

Senator Smith (01:14:38):

So welcome to you and your family.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:14:39):

Thank you.

Senator Smith (01:14:39):

I can see how proud your family is of you and I appreciated very much our conversation in my office. And I also appreciate your Minnesota roots and connection in Clear Lake, Minnesota. So thanks for that. So we have lots to talk about and I'm going to get right to it.

(01:14:55)
I wanted to start out by just raising the issue of ethanol and sugar. And I'm so glad that Senator Klobuchar and Senator Hoeven have touched on those two issues, both of which are vitally important to Minnesota agriculture. Ethanol is homegrown energy. It is a major economic driver in Minnesota, $7 billion to our economy. And similarly, the National Sugar Program supports more than 151,000 jobs in our country and contributes $23 billion a year to the US economy, and it is run with zero cost to US taxpayers. So I appreciate your commitment to work with us on those two important programs.

(01:15:36)
Let's turn to rural development. You come from a small town and I represent a state filed with small towns and rural places, places that are full of energy and creativity and innovation and talent. And I think we also know that small towns and rural communities face unique challenges. And I sometimes think that people forget that the rural development side of the USDA is really important. That portfolio is very important. And I'll be honest, I'm fearful that the work done there, those efforts not being well understood could become the target for budget cutting. And I also know that American farmers and ranchers really trust the USDA on those issues. They don't want to see those programs farmed out to other agencies where we all are worried that they would just get less attention. We talked about this when you were in my office and I appreciate that.

(01:16:26)
So let's dive in on a couple of issues. Two big rural development issues; housing and childcare. So we know we have a serious shortage of affordable housing in rural communities. These are places where our elders and folks that live on fixed incomes, people who make our food system work, it's where they live. For decades, the rural housing service at the USDA has helped in those communities and everyone agrees it needs to be modernized and updated. Last Congress, Senator Rounds and I introduced the, excuse me, the Rural Housing Service Reform Act. To do that we had 14 bipartisan co-sponsors. So I want to ask you first, Ms. Rollins, can you talk a bit about your vision for how the USDA can engage on rural housing and will you work with me on rural housing service reform as we're describing in our bill?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:17:14):

Thank you, Senator Smith. And I think of all of the portfolio, if confirmed that I am taking on, the one that excites me the most is the opportunity to put forward a vision and build a program around revivifying, restoring and bringing back rural America. And clearly, the federal government itself can't do that, right? There's going to be many, many factors, but the idea that we at USDA can lead that effort, that it's not just about elevating our farmers and ensuring our ranchers are protected and that USDA doing everything they can to defend them, it is an all approach.

(01:17:57)
It is housing, it is childcare, it is education, it is all of the above. And one of the things I think I bring to the table, and I think Senator Smith, you and I and even Senator Klobuchar discussed this, in the last White House, I led the effort called the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council. I say I led it. We hired Scott Turner to lead it, who's now President Trump's housing nominee and you all, if you haven't met him, will love meeting him. Former NFL player and just a pastor and a visionary.

(01:18:25)
But in that effort we were really focused on urban communities and the disadvantaged communities within those urban communities. And over the course of many months, across the agencies, across the government under President Trump, we focused on the myriad of programs that were duplicative, that tried to serve the same constituency, that sometimes were fine but other times was not a great use of dollars. So having an all-of-government approach like that where we can really understand what role HHS plays, what role housing plays, and doing it quickly so we can begin to roll it out. A final thing I'll say, and I know Senator, you've got one more question. America at 250, which America turns 250 next year, is going to be an incredible opportunity for us to take this message to every corner of rural America and to really get people focused on it.

Senator Smith (01:19:13):

So I appreciate that very much and I think we do need to bring that message, but we also need to make sure that we are supporting and improving wherever we can, those rural development programs at USDA and not throwing them under the bus because I can tell you that they are counted on by folks in rural communities. So, I hope that we'll be able to work together on that.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:19:32):

I look forward to it.

Senator Smith (01:19:33):

Ms. Rollins, I want to just touch in the time that I have left on the nutrition programs at USDA. Nutrition programs are foundational for healthy Americans. Two-thirds of SNAP recipients are families with children. One-third are families with older adults or people with disabilities. SNAP is a rural development tool. In Minnesota, rural communities have the highest food insecurity in the whole state and in this country, nine out of 10 countries with the highest food insecurity rates are rural. So Ms. Rollins, can you talk to me about how you see the rules around SNAP? And let's start with what you think about work requirements for SNAP.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:20:15):

Well, first I understand this is an incredibly important issue to everyone on the committee. My commitment is to ensure that we have the data, the research, and the understanding of this program to make sure that we are serving those that need it. And as I mentioned earlier, raised by a single mom in a rural community with two little sisters. She worked at the library, she made $5 an hour. I understand this.

Senator Smith (01:20:35):

And is it your view that we need to adjust or change the work requirements for SNAP?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:20:42):

It probably will be no surprise to everyone on this committee, both Republican and Democrat, and through a course of 20 years of being a policy leader that I do believe in work requirements. I do think they're important. I do think, and I don't fully understand, but plan to get more in the weeds on this if confirmed and working with all of you to make sure that your concerns are part of that education process for me.

Senator Smith (01:21:03):

So my view, and in fact I think this is the official view of the USDA, is that SNAP should ensure that no one fears going hungry in this country, but also that it reflects the importance of work and responsibility in this country. And that is why SNAP has extensive work requirements in place and folks that are not required to work under SNAP, very small number, it's because they are taking care of a child or an incapacitated person, because they are all participating in an alcohol or drug treatment program, because they're already working under some other program. So I ask you to consider this as you look at this because, again, I don't think that this is a good place to be looking for extra dollars when we have so many people that are struggling with food insecurity even though they are working one or maybe two or three jobs. Thank you. I know I'm out of time.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:21:56):

Thank you, Senator. I commit to working with you and I look forward to it.

Senator Klobuchar (01:21:59):

Thank you very much, Senator Smith. Next up, Senator Ernst, our neighbor to the south.

Senator Ernst (01:22:04):

Yeah, thank you to our ranking member, Amy Klobuchar, and a great neighbor as has been mentioned many times over between Minnesota and Iowa. Amy has worked with me on so many different agriculture and biofuel related issues and I am excited to work with you, Senator Klobuchar, you and Chairman Boozman as we work on a five-year farm bill. It is very important that we get that done and it is something that I hear continuously from Iowans as I travel all 99 counties in my great state.

(01:22:39)
And of course, to you, Mrs. Brooke Rollins, thank you so much for being here today and thank you for bringing your friends and family. I know how important that support is and I'm excited to see you as our nominee for Secretary of Agriculture. I know you're an ag girl at heart, we have talked about it in length. I truly am too and I do have full confidence in your ability to lead this department, full faith and confidence in this role.

(01:23:11)
So, Ms. Rollins, something that you and I talked about, I'll start with this one. We talked about it at length is telework. And I know that we must address some of the work policies for federal employees at the Department of Agriculture. As you know, the GAO reported USDA's headquarters has a space utilization rate at just 11%. 11%. I've even received whistleblower letters from employees describing the building as a ghost town. So last year, I addressed this exact issue with then Secretary Tom Vilsack and was met with very strong opposition. Rather than provide any evidence to dispute the GAO's numbers. And even after repeatedly following up with his staff, he refused to give me specific in-office numbers or building utilization data.

(01:24:09)
In stark contrast, President Trump acted immediately to get our federal workforce back to actually working for the American people. So, Ms. Rollins, in line with these efforts, what's your plan to achieve this 60% utilization goal for your headquarters' buildings, which has been set by Congress? And secondly, will you commit to requiring each USDA employee to show up to the office?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:24:40):

Senator Ernst, thank you. And I really loved our time. We first started talking about this way before even the election.

Senator Ernst (01:24:47):

Way back.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:24:48):

And I love your intense focus on ensuring that those who are hired and paid by taxpayer dollars are fully committed to serve in the most effective way wherever and for whomever they work. And that is, I believe, being in an office almost every single time. And it's not my belief alone. Obviously President Trump has been talking about this. I believe there was even an executive order in the last day or two calling for the same. So I do look forward to getting into the office, hopefully very soon, and really working to effectuate the most effective workforce that the United States Department of Agriculture has ever had in the history of this country. And in so doing, ensuring that they're all in the office to make that happen.

Senator Ernst (01:25:36):

Wonderful, thank you for that commitment. And another area that has been brought up quite frequently up here on the dais and one that won't be a surprise to you, but another area that is critically important for my Iowa farmers is biofuels. It's a key source of demand for our corn and our soybeans.

(01:25:58)
During the Biden administration, this industry really did suffer from deflated renewable, or the RVOs, the last-minute announcements on sales of E-15 and the lack of clear tax policy guidance on the 45-Z clean fuel production credit, which is something that Roger Marshall, Senator Marshall of Kansas and I were just discussing. Many of these moves have forced plants to idle or stop production completely. This is a huge issue for us. This is threatening hundreds of rural jobs and squeezing grain prices in the process. So, I do applaud President Trump for making E-15 a priority, he did have an executive order on that, but I do look forward to securing a permanent fix in law.

(01:26:44)
But we will need an all hands on deck approach for crafting future RVOs that reflect production capacity and guidance on the 45-Z that will support American farmers. So, Ms. Rollins, the USDA has a very big role to play when crafting these policies. As secretary, will you commit to supporting biofuels and working with me to provide certainty for our farmers and the entire renewable fuel industry?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:27:13):

Yes, Senator. And I really look forward to that. I think there's no question where President Trump stands on this. I believe, if memory serves me correct, there was even an executive order on this in the last administration. It didn't come out of domestic policy, it came out of Larry Kudlow's NEC, so I didn't work on that directly, but I know the courts I believe overturned it and correctly stated that the Congress should take that up.

(01:27:35)
I really look forward to working with you, but also with my friend Lee Zeldin, if confirmed, over at EPA on a piece of this, on the 45-Z with my friend Scott Bessent over at Treasury. I think that you all will find and hopefully be encouraged that the cabinet, if confirmed, we all know each other, are friends, many of us are like family and we really, really are looking forward to working together on these cross-agency issues like the ones that you've just outlined.

Senator Ernst (01:28:03):

That's wonderful. Really appreciate that because in the last administration, I have to say that in conversations with the leaders at all of those agencies, we were really blown off and left swinging in the breeze. So, I anticipate that President Trump will want to do right by our farmers and those that are producing renewable fuels.

(01:28:22)
Another issue, just very quickly, Ms. Rollins, top of mind for Iowa's ag community is Proposition 12. We are the number one hog producer in the United States, number one hog producing state. And California's ballot initiative has been very devastating for our family farms and is only fueling market consolidation of pork producers. So, just ultimately what we would like to do is move on legislation to craft a way forward so that we don't have states telling our producers how they can raise their livestock. Very important to us. So, Ms. Rollins, in line with President Trump's priority to lower food costs for American families, will you commit to working with this committee to reverse Proposition 12?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:29:15):

Proposition 12, and I have just in the last few months become very acquainted with it. The idea that one state, and listen, I'm a federalism believer. I believe in the founders' vision of the 10th Amendment and the government closest to the people is the government that should be most active and under that 10th amendment. But this particular issue, I believe from even a bipartisan perspective, there's no doubt that it's not just affecting California, it's affecting multitudes of other states, multitudes of other parts of the ag community, including our hog family farms, Iowa, but many other states have been really affected by this as well. I know that you guys, if you don't already have a bill filed, you're soon to file one, legislation has been drafted. So, yes, I commit to working with you on that and look forward to it.

Senator Ernst (01:30:02):

Excellent. Thank you, Ms. Rollins, and I look forward to hosting you in Iowa on an ag and biofuels tour and I would welcome your family as well. So, thank you very much. And I yield back.

Chairman Boozman (01:30:15):

Senator Durbin.

Senator Durbin (01:30:16):

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Mrs. Rollins, I took your advice. When we met yesterday, you told me about your mother's agenda as a Texas State representative on the issue of PFAS and I should make a point of meeting her. She was the first person I met in the room today and we talked-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:30:33):

She's special, isn't she, Senator?

Senator Durbin (01:30:34):

She is. And it looks like we're going to have a possibility of a real bipartisan state-federal alliance on an issue important to everybody. So I'm glad she came and I'm glad I had a chance to meet her.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:30:44):

Thank you, sir.

Senator Durbin (01:30:45):

We talked about a lot of things yesterday and I want to talk about one that's in the headlines this morning and will be for a long time, the mass deportation of undocumented people from the United States. I mentioned to you that I have been surprised by the response I received among farmers and ranchers and people involved in agriculture when it comes to the immigration issue. I told you about the dairy farmer who said, "Senator Durbin, we're going to close down our dairy operation after three generations in our family because we need immigrant workers for dairy operations in Illinois." Another young lady with the Farm Bureau raised her hand and said, "While you're at it, include the orchards. Who's going to pick this crop? It isn't the local kids at the high school, they won't even man the fruit stand out by the highway and I put an air conditioner in there. I can't get them to come to work for me. I need immigrant workers."

(01:31:42)
Turns out that 40% of the farm workers in this country are undocumented. And you know what that means? They're vulnerable to being deported and if they're deported, what are the farmers going to do? For a lot of them and for a lot of different industries, immigration is critical. Now your organization has said some things, some pretty strong things. Your American First Policy Institute, they've called for deportation at a scale that actually matters and massive deportation efforts. So I just need to ask you, what is your policy on immigration? We've got to get down to the real world, not the criminals, we don't want them, they shouldn't come here and they shouldn't stay. But those who work every single darn day to pick a crop that American people are not going to pick themselves. And most of them, I shouldn't say most, 40% are undocumented. So can we expect this administration to be raiding farms and going after the immigrant farm workers?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:32:41):

Senator, thank you and I really was grateful for our time yesterday and our time working together in the last administration, and I appreciate your kindness. I was a little late yesterday, there was some confusion and you gave me a little grace, so I really appreciate that, yes, Senator Looan, you as well.

(01:33:01)
Listen, the president's vision of a secure border and a mass deportation at a scale that matters is something I support. I was his domestic policy director in the last White House. I have built and led an organization, alongside Chad Wolf, our former Secretary of Homeland Security at the America First Policy Institute. I want to be extremely transparent and I think that you deserve that. That is my commitment is to help President Trump deploy his agenda in an effective way while at the same time defending, as if confirmed Secretary of Agriculture, our farmers and ranchers across this country.

(01:33:47)
And so having both of those, which you may argue is in conflict, but having both of those is key priorities. My job is to work with, if confirmed, the Secretary of Labor, Lori Chavez-DeRemer from Oregon, but she herself has family farms in California and Oregon, to work with her on the H2A program, to also work with all of you to reform and perhaps modernize that H2A program. We'll also say that the president has been very clear that this first round will be aimed at, as you mentioned, those who have committed crimes and are criminals while inside our borders over the last four years. So, we will follow the data, we will follow and listen to our farmers and ranchers as this is moving. And my commitment is to work with all of you to work to solve and do everything we can to make sure that none of these farms or dairy producers are put out of business.

Senator Durbin (01:34:47):

Now, I support your answer. Dangerous people shouldn't be here and if they're here, they should be gone, period. But when we're talking massive deportation, we're going beyond dangerous criminals. And I just wonder if we ought to give fair warning to farmers and ranchers across America that if you have immigrant labor, you can expect federal agents to come and search your property. Is that in the future for farmers and ranchers under the mass deportation plan?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:35:14):

Sir, I have not been involved in that. The president's current plan, I cannot answer that one way or the other. I do know that my job is to ensure that as those conversations are ongoing, if confirmed, that I am part of that data collection and understanding and that the president understands what this means to our agriculture community. And I believe sincerely that he will execute his agenda that he has promised the American people, but that will never forget our ag community in so doing.

Senator Durbin (01:35:47):

Well, I certainly hope so because these men and women, immigrant labor on our farms are doing backbreaking work every single damn day and they've done it for years and many of them, 40% of them are undocumented. And if they're going to be deported, then we're seeing a lot fewer fruits and vegetables that we take for granted every time we go into the store. I think that's part of the reality.

(01:36:10)
When it comes to the SNAP program, the work requirement and the asset requirements, do you think we ought to apply work and asset requirements to other agricultural programs?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:36:19):

Senator Durbin, I look forward to learning more about those. I have actually spent most of my time on SNAP in preparing for this hearing. I'm obviously aware there are 16 other nutrition programs across the United States Department of Agriculture. I look forward to learning more about all of those, meeting with those that are running them, even looking across the agencies to see whom else is working on these projects and ensuring that they're the most effective for those who need them, but also the most efficient for the taxpayer.

Senator Durbin (01:36:48):

I'm going to ask one last question. Project 2025, you're familiar with. Calls for capping crop insurance payouts to $40,000 per farmer and terminating long-time USDA export promotion programs. What's your position on this Project 2025 proposal?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:37:05):

Sir, the America First Policy Institute was not involved at all in Project 2025. We were in no meetings, we were not part of any policy process, and had nothing to do with it. And so, I am sorry, I don't know that I can answer that specifically. I will say that my role is to defend farmers and ranchers and our ag communities and our rural communities with everything I have. So as I am looking at all of these programs, aside from anything that other think tanks put together, my commitment is to ensure that we follow the data and protect our ag community.

Senator Durbin (01:37:38):

Thank you.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:37:42):

Thank you.

Chairman Boozman (01:37:42):

Senator Hyde-Smith.

Senator Hyde-Smith (01:37:42):

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and congratulations. I'm so proud of you and so excited to get to work with you. I think it's really neat that you got the call from President Trump and I believe you were in Newton, Mississippi.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:37:54):

Newton, Mississippi, in the Walmart parking lot. That's when the call came.

Senator Hyde-Smith (01:37:58):

When you got the call on your way to the Auburn game. And I believe that went into three over times, if I remember correctly?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:38:05):

It did. And the Aggies, once again, ran out of time, which is our November sort of game plan these days.

Senator Hyde-Smith (01:38:12):

Well, that was a super exciting day.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:38:15):

Thank you.

Senator Hyde-Smith (01:38:16):

For sure, no doubt. And it was so nice to get to meet Mark out at the National Finals Rodeo. Thank you for accepting the invitation to come there. But I want to highlight two important things before diving into the questions, and that is the supplemental that was passed before Christmas. And I just want to thank Senator Boozman, I want to thank Senator Collins on how incredibly important that was to get that into that bill, that $10 billion that will make a total difference in the survival of so many producers throughout the state. So, thank you for that. That certainly didn't go unnoticed by the ag world.

(01:38:56)
But I wanted to talk to you about catfish.

Senator Hyde-Smith (01:39:00):

Mississippi is the top-producing state of catfish. Our farm-raised catfish, and it's a huge contributor to our rural economy throughout the state and our neighbors in Arkansas and Alabama, they're right there with us. But unfortunately the foreign catfish issues, the imports, primarily Vietnam and China, that has really hurt the industry. But my greatest concern was now that it is being inspected by USDA, Food Safety and Inspection Service and it's charged with inspecting all those imported catfish and I've been very concerned about how that has been implemented. They're far more rigorous than the Food Drug Administration inspection, but the inspection hasn't been at the top of the priority list for the last administration and that made a big, huge difference because there can be dangerous carcinogens in there, many elements that's harmful to human consumption that was getting by and not inspected. So if confirmed, will you work to ensure that FSIS tightens its imported catfish inspection responsibilities?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:40:14):

Yes, ma'am. I really look forward to all aspects of the United States Department of Agriculture, but have heard from several of you that the inspection part of it could be significantly improved and my commitment is to do everything I can to do just that. We are close to announcing an undersecretary, I should say the President is close to announcing an undersecretary in that role and I think everyone will be very pleased when that announcement is made and look forward to hopefully his quick confirmation and letting us get to work, Senator.

Senator Hyde-Smith (01:40:46):

Wonderful. I fought that for years as we're the top producing state there and as Ag Commissioner in Mississippi. And I also share your commitment, as you mentioned in your testimony to addressing the H5N1 and the New World screwworm outbreaks as high-consequences disease threatening animal agriculture. I've gotten several calls lately on that from producers that are very concerned about that and I can remember the avian influenza threat getting the Mississippi flocks. That kept me up at night and I had plenty of foam, plenty of water on standby that if we had the outbreak we were ready. But I was also involved in reopening beef exports markets after BSE or the mad cow [inaudible 01:41:33], and those markets took over a decade to recover when we had countries that did not buy our beef because of that for 13 years until we got that under control.

(01:41:47)
But while much attention is given to the problem of animal disease outbreaks, I want to focus on the key solution that's often overlooked and that is the importance of USDA veterinarians. And those are so critical and despite the hiring freeze, those professionals are essential in protecting animal and public health and ensuring food security because of these outbreaks. The vets are currently managing the H5N1 outbreak by testing meat and milk and helping producers with biosecurity practices. But unfortunately, USDA has struggled for years with inadequate veterinarian staffing and with the animal implant health inspection and with APHIS, a problem was made worse by a compensation system that the previous secretary described as just uncompetitive and a hearing in last Congress. But I tried to work with the previous administration to begin correcting the serious recruitment and retention problems there, but those efforts were pretty much ignored as well. But it's just extremely frustrating to know how critical it is to make sure we have the safest, cheapest food in the entire world and it takes inspections to do that.

(01:43:11)
But hopefully that will be better and I'm going to ask for your commitment on that as it just jeopardizes the American agriculture competitiveness by putting us at further risk for spreading disease. But the shortage affects public health and agricultural … The situations we find ourselves in because we just sit there and hope and pray that we don't get a call that there is an outbreak of anything. The USDA Office of Personnel Management must address these veterinary personnel challenges. So my question is, will you commit to working with me toward a timely and meaningful solutions, solutions of course that would be in line with the President's agenda toward this personnel for these veterinarians that we need at USDA?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:44:01):

Senator, I so look forward to doing that and I'm not sure if you've heard, but Texas A&M has a heck of a good veterinary school that I'm very familiar with. So I especially on this, look forward to that with you. I do think that the recruiting piece of this and you and I working together and I believe Senator Klobuchar may be a co-chair with you on the veterinary committee here in the Senate, but across the board ensuring that your leadership and my supporting you if confirmed continues to be a priority and really look forward to that.

Senator Hyde-Smith (01:44:32):

One quick statement I want to get in to look forward to working with you on as well once confirmed is to address the USDA Packers and Stockyards rules concerning poultry. It's really caused some significant cost increase to our poultry growers and it really doesn't have any quantifiable profits. So that's another thing that I would like to meet with you on is Packers and Stockyards, the law that we all live by. Thank you so much and I so look forward to supporting you.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:45:02):

Thank you Senator so much.

Mr. Chairman (01:45:04):

Senator Booker?

Cory Booker (01:45:05):

Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. I'm excited to be here and excited to have a few moments with you. Thank you for coming by my office yesterday. I know I was the favorite office you visited much more than-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:45:15):

You were the favorite. There were three favorites and you were one of the three.

Cory Booker (01:45:18):

I am glad to hear that. I know you liked my visit better than Tommy Tuberville. I'm going to jump on the moving mom bandwagon here. When you told me about the work she did, the work on PFAS, God, I hope it foreshadows some of the work we can do together. It's a real problem for American farmers and it's something that's really important to me. I mentioned to you when you were with me that one of the biggest problems we have in America is that the biggest producers in our country have done well. That's not a problem. I love and celebrate American success, but we're having a problem with the big, big producers, often controlled by multinational corporations who are doing great. But most of our small farmers in America really continue to struggle. Since 2017, we've lost over 140,000 farms in our country and since the 1970s, over half a million farms have been lost in this country.

(01:46:19)
This loss of family farms has led to awful things happening in our rural communities, an exodus of residents, jobs, really the hollowing out of rural communities. And for the farmers who've managed to hang on times are really tough for American farmers. 88% of family farmers have second jobs off the farms and a majority of that income utilized by those families is generated from off-farm income. And right now the USDA programs are structured in ways that serve well the biggest producers, but often do not work for small and mid-size family farms. So I'm pushing in the upcoming farm bill to create an office of small farms within the USDA that would be charged with looking at USDA programs and policies and finding ways to make them work for our small farmers. This is a crisis we're losing our heritage. Families that have had farms for five, six generations in America are really struggling. And this is just a yes or no question, which I got in private. I'm hoping to get in public. As Secretary, will you make it a priority for the USDA to do a lot more to help small farmers?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:47:29):

One zillion percent, yes which is [inaudible 01:47:32] math because I think you can only get to 100% yes, but 100% yes. And Senator, we discussed yesterday, for me personally, that is where my heart is and my passion in restoring rural America and working together in all parts of our country.

Cory Booker (01:47:46):

I am grateful. I'm going to say hallelujah, amen to your answer and remind you that your mother is watching.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:47:52):

Yes sir.

Cory Booker (01:47:53):

All right, so as you know, we're also facing a global hunger crisis. Millions of people are in desperate need of food. For the past several years, Senator Boozman and I have worked closely with the USDA to increase and expedite the USDA's purchase of commodities such as rice and wheat from US farmers for shipment to countries where people are really suffering near famine-like conditions. It's a win-win for us. The USDA purchases really help our farmers and at the same time we're able to provide life-saving food to children and families around the globe.

(01:48:25)
I know that you and I share a deep faith. It's a motivation behind what we do in our work, and you believe that the gospel calls on us to help people in need, but it's also a national security issue for America and helping to stabilize other nations that are facing crises. My office is getting a lot of concern and concerning reports from farmers that humanitarian programs like Food for Peace may be paused by one of the recent executive orders. I really am hoping that's not true, and again, a yes or no question, once you're confirmed, will you check on the status of that and will you make food aid purchases from our farmers a priority?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:49:08):

Yes, sir. Of course.

Cory Booker (01:49:09):

Fantastic. Meat packers, most Americans don't know this, they work in really horrifically dangerous conditions, one of the most dangerous jobs in America. They're being forced to make repetitive motions every day, forceful ones. The USDA published recently a report showing that at current line speeds, 81% of chicken processing plant workers are at an elevated risk significantly so of developing debilitating upper body disorders and things like carpal tunnel syndrome. These workers also face a risk of serious injuries. On average, two worker amputations per week occur on slaughter lines in the United States of America. Just imagine if that was your family member. Even worse, meat packing giants like JBS have admitted and been fined for child labor violations in their processing plants. The USDA currently is one of the largest buyers from these big meat packers. I have a bill with Senator Josh Hawley. It is a bipartisan bill to stop federal contracting with companies with child labor violations. As Secretary, yes or no, will you commit to using the agency's purchasing power to force these companies to end these horrific abuses, child labor practices and bad treatment of workers?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:50:28):

Senator Booker, I look forward to working with you on that. I don't and have not spent enough time to fully understand to commit one way or the other, but I absolutely look forward to working with you and learning more about this issue.

Cory Booker (01:50:38):

Senator Hawley and I will definitely talk to you more. I'm grateful for that. Yes, and I'm going to speed to my last question. Ultra-processed foods in school meals. We're facing a crisis, you talked about it earlier with our children. 38% of teenagers in America have pre-diabetes among other often chronic diseases. We have a sickness epidemic in American children. We know that if kids reach adulthood obese, they are on a trajectory of a lifetime of sickness and suffering that will cost our healthcare system inordinate amounts and cost them as well. We know that 60% of children's calories, 60% currently come from ultra-processed foods. Many of them have unhealthy levels of salt and added sugar. With our school meal program, we have an opportunity to make sure that kids get healthy nutritious meals that empower them in school that day and for their life. But right now, kids are still getting too many of their calories in schools from ultra-processed meals. Yes or no, if confirmed, will you commit to dealing with this crisis and really focusing on improving children's nutrition by reducing the amount of ultra-processed foods in our school meal program?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:51:47):

The answer is yes, but I want to add to that if you don't mind. As I mentioned with Chairman Boozman, I do think this is a crisis and I do agree with you and I think before my friend RFK Jr., Bobby Kennedy came on the scene, I believe that was in August and became part of the America First movement that this particular issue while really important, was not necessarily at the top of the America First agenda. At AFPI, America First, we had some people working on it but didn't expect it to be a priority in the administration. I am encouraged that it is now a priority and look forward to working with everyone.

Cory Booker (01:52:26):

I'm so grateful for that. This is not a question because my time's expired, but Prop 12 coming out of California, Packers and Stockyard Act, I know you'll be open to us bringing you small family farmers, independent family farmers who show that Prop 12 has opened up new opportunities for them and the Packers and Stockyard Act is protecting them and they actually want to see better enforcement. So I know you're open to us having that conversation.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:52:48):

I will look forward to that. Thank you, Senator.

Cory Booker (01:52:50):

Thank you.

Mr. Chairman (01:52:51):

Senator Marshall.

Roger Marshall (01:52:52):

Thank you Chairman, ranking member. Ms. Rollins, welcome.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:52:55):

Thank you.

Roger Marshall (01:52:56):

Want to know if you agree with me that whole milk is the most nutritious drink known to humankind and belongs in our school lunches?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:53:08):

Senator, I don't know that you have met my mom yet, but this is all we had in our refrigerator growing up. Not anything else, just whole milk. She is absolutely never going to let us forget this, the fact that this is coming up. But yes, this hits home to me very, very quickly. It brings back a lot of memories.

Roger Marshall (01:53:28):

So Ms. Rollins, like many of us on this committee, you have a love, a passion for rural America, for agriculture. Tell us where that comes from and why this job is important to American agriculture and rural America. Just from your heart.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:53:42):

Senator, thank you. The fact that I'm sitting here today, that I am in the United States Capitol, that I'm sitting in front of this committee, that I am serving at the appointment of the President of the United States as one of his potential cabinet members, but yet I grew up in a town of 1,200 with a single mom, with 2 little sisters, went to Texas A&M on an agriculture scholarship because my love, but also we needed the money, that Future Farmers of America is the organization that set my path so many years ago. I am fighting for the next Brooke who is growing up in a little bitty town with a single mom that her weekends are spent on horses and raising cattle and barrel racing and at Friday night football, at least in the South. And making sure that those communities continue to raise and provide thriving and incredible opportunities for the next generation of leaders so that this country can continue in the next 250 years to do what we've done in the last 250.

(01:54:46)
And that is to create and govern under our founders' vision of the greatest country in the history of the world and this work and this committee and this moment in time is the backbone to all of that.

Roger Marshall (01:54:57):

Yeah, Ms. Rollins reminds me of a song that "Growing up a Kansas farm boy's mostly having fun," and I think that's what you're describing.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:55:04):

That's right.

Roger Marshall (01:55:05):

It was a simpler time. You pointed out earlier 90% of rural America supported President Trump in the election, over 90%. Now every time I see the President, the first thing he asked me is, ""Roger, how are your farmers and ranchers doing in Kansas? Can you just share with this committee, President Trump's passion, compassion for farmers and ranchers? Do you have similar conversations with him as well?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:55:29):

Yes. Senator, one of the illuminating moments of my time with him in the last administration, and it was, as you can imagine, an adventure beyond any imagination to be next to President Trump for three years and then to continue to work with him after he left the White House to build the America First Policy Institute and continue the policies for the next 100 years, not just for this moment in time. But I in the last West Wing, I believe I'm speaking correctly, was the only person with an agriculture background. And that wasn't widely known because I was managing the entire portfolio. But anytime in any senior staff meetings or anytime we were in the Oval Office and these issues would come up, he would always point to me and say, "Where are we on that?" And it was so clear to me that that is where his heart is.

(01:56:26)
I'll never forget a cabinet meeting where we were having a discussion about some big corporate entity who had asked for a very large sum in the multis of billions of dollars for a project, and that same week he had been asked for that project, he'd also visited some farmers in Georgia. And I'll never forget I was sitting behind him because I was not part of the cabinet, I was part of the senior staff and I'll never forget, I don't think the media was in there, but he looked at the entire cabinet and then turned over his shoulder and looked at us who were sitting behind him as his senior team and he said, "I'm not here for those guys who are asking for billions of dollars for their new project and their market value is many, many billions and billions more. I'm here for those farmers. I am here for those men and women that I met in Georgia yesterday who are hurting but never complain, never miss a beat, never stop doing what they're called to do, which is to produce for the families across America and across the world.

(01:57:28)
That is who I am here and we all," pointing to the cabinet and the staff, "Are here to serve." I think that was in maybe year two of the four and I've never forgotten it. And when he called me about this job, we talked about that again.

Roger Marshall (01:57:42):

Thanks Ms. Rollins. So obviously agricultural America is important to you, it's important to the President. Would you just speak for a moment how important biofuels are to the farmers, to ranchers who benefit from some of the substrates coming out of that process and to rural America as well, and specifically how 45Z might impact rural America?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:58:04):

I think that everyone knows where the President is on this and he often jokes that there were a lot of meetings, I think a lot of you were in. Senator Grassley, I know you were in many of those in the last White House, making sure that the President fully understood the importance of exactly what you're talking about, Senator on biofuels and especially to our farmers. I believe that in the last 48 hours, one of his executive orders on energy actually included a mention of biofuels and also my role if confirmed is to defend all of American agriculture. So I believe Senator that you and others who hail from these states where this is a driver for your farmers and your ranchers and your economy should feel very confident that you have a friend and a defender in this current administration to make sure this continues. 45Z, obviously my friend Scott Bessent, if confirmed over at Treasury, will be working on that. That's in his purview, but I will ensure that he has the data and the voices and the opinions around him to make the right decision.

Roger Marshall (01:59:01):

Yeah. Just one more quick call on the 45Z, is that certainly what we don't want is China to benefit from it.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:59:07):

Correct.

Roger Marshall (01:59:07):

Which is happening right now. We can go into that in more detail later as well. By the way, I was just sitting here thinking I remember President Trump's, the first primary back in '16 in Iowa. I believe he came out, was the candidate that came out in favor of biofuels as well as I recall.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:59:23):

He did. That's right.

Roger Marshall (01:59:23):

Let's finish up on the regulatory environment. Boy, I'm not sure if anything's a bigger concern to the American farmer right now than the regulatory environment and the two hot button issues have been WOTUS, Waters of the US and the Endangered Species Act. Can you tell us what your involvement was in rolling back that WOTUS regulation with the previous administration? And that I think is a good example going forward, what will be happening?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (01:59:46):

I will and I appreciate that so much because I do have extensive experience in many of these regulatory programs that in the last administration we worked to rollback but also align better for the needs of our ag communities and ensure that the Waters of the United States rule did not put more farmers out of business. Same with the Endangered Species Act. I know that that's also a big issue in our forestry lane as well. So I really encourage and look forward and my policy heart is very happy at the opportunity to make those better, to understand the harm and follow the data on it and really work with all of you to try to solve for that in the next four years.

Mr. Chairman (02:00:29):

Senator Schiff.

Adam Schiff (02:00:31):

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And at the outset I want to tell you how very grateful I am to serve on this committee. California has not had a senator on the agriculture committee for over 30 years and as a leading agricultural state, I'm really proud of the industry and all the people who work in it and grateful to have a chance to represent them on this committee.

Mr. Chairman (02:00:54):

That's great.

Adam Schiff (02:00:54):

And Senator Marshall, I wanted to tell you that a California legislator once made a name for himself by drinking a beaker of malathion to demonstrate his view that he thought it was that safe. I will not be doing that today. Ms. Rollins, thank you for being here today. When we met earlier this month to discuss your nomination, firefighters in Southern California had just begun efforts to contain two blazes. As we know now, this was only the beginning of what would ultimately amount to one of the most devastating wildfire disasters in the state's history, if not the nation's history. Over the last two and a half weeks in LA it is been difficult for me to put into words how truly catastrophic these fires have been. Just the scope of them is beyond anything I would've ever imagined. Whole neighborhoods and communities just wiped out.

(02:01:52)
The Forest Service has been playing an amazing role in the emergency response efforts working hand in hand with state and local partners to secure resources and personnel. To aid California's wildfire response this month the Forest Service deployed 2,300 federal firefighters, 12 large air tankers, 20 helicopters, 6 scoopers and 8 modular airborne firefighting aircraft. Without these federal resources, the devastation in LA would have been far worse and we're not done with it yet. We had the outbreak of another fire just yesterday. If confirmed as Secretary, are you committed to deploying the same emergency resources to fight wildfires in blue states that would be deployed to fight wildfires in red states? Can we count on you not to discriminate among states in the vigor of the federal response?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:02:48):

Senator, thank you. And obviously, but it bears saying since you asked 100% yes, and to watch the devastation in your beautiful state has been heartbreaking for all of us, no matter if we're from red states or blue states. I think that hopefully if there's any good that comes from this, if I'm confirmed, we can figure out how to be even a better, more impactful resource the next time this happens and hopefully be able to work more closely, more quickly with those on the ground across blue states and red states.

Adam Schiff (02:03:23):

Well, thank you. I very much appreciate that. Wildland firefighters have been putting their lives on the line to protect my communities back home, and we need to make sure that we continue to encourage people to become wildland firefighters and that their compensation is commensurate with the critical and dangerous work that they do. I was speaking with one firefighter who was, I think an LA fire department firefighter, not a wildland firefighter, but nonetheless facing the same risks who told me that he wasn't sure he was going to make it out alive, that there were fires in front of him and behind him, his communications equipment was in and out, water was running low. And he said it was the closest thing to hell that he could imagine.

(02:04:17)
The key I think, to recruiting and retaining people to do that kind of vital and dangerous work is to make sure they're well compensated. The bipartisan infrastructure law signed by President Biden included a long overdue pay raise for federal firefighters, but that raise is set to expire in March. This means our federal firefighters could once again be paid as low as $15 an hour to risk their lives to keep our communities safe. If confirmed as Secretary, are you committed to fighting to extend the pay increase so that we continue to recruit and retain these wildland firefighters?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:04:56):

Thank you, Senator Schiff and the tens of thousands of firefighters at the Forest Service at USDA in our peak seasons, and even now I think we have close to 1,000 on the ground in your home state. I am 100% behind ensuring that we have the best firefighters, the best workforce that we can possibly have to fight these fires. I need to learn more about exactly what it is you're speaking about before a full commitment. But I will commit to this that in all of my time with President Trump and the eight plus years I've been beside him in serving in his administration and answering the call for this position if confirmed, that he too believes that those who are putting their lives on the line every single day deserve the honor and the respect and the pay that goes along with those jobs. So I look forward to working with you to ensure as we move forward that that is happening in the most appropriate way.

Adam Schiff (02:05:54):

I appreciate that. Let me turn to a different topic. During the President's first term, USDA had to allocate tens of billions of dollars to offset the financial impact of the tariffs and the reciprocal tariffs that other countries imposed on our agriculture and on our farmers. But that financial assistance offered to farmers impacted by the trade war was not equally distributed. Despite California's leading role in US agriculture and the heavy tariffs imposed on specialty crop exports, California growers receive far less than their fair share in tariff assistance. Under the 2019 market Facilitation program, out of hundreds of specialty crops grown in the US, only 8 crops received direct assistance and in the end, approximately 1% of the nearly 15 billion in USDA allocated resources went to California specialty crop growers. So about 1%. And as you know, we're the leading state when it comes to specialty crops. If confirmed, are you committed to distributing all economic assistance, including trade relief to states without regard for their political leanings?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:07:09):

I am committed to that. I think Senator Locke, even you and I discuss the specialty crops in Michigan when we met. I'm not familiar with the data that you laid out, but I look forward to learning more about that and being committed to ensuring that to the very, very best of our ability that this is appropriately adjudicated.

Adam Schiff (02:07:27):

I appreciate that. I look forward to working together to make sure that that relief, if it should be necessary, is distributed equitably.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:07:36):

Yes, sir.

Adam Schiff (02:07:36):

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield back.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:07:38):

Thank you Senator.

Mr. Chairman (02:07:42):

Senator Tommy Tuberville.

Tommy Tuberville (02:07:43):

Coach.

Mr. Chairman (02:07:44):

Coach.

Tommy Tuberville (02:07:45):

Thank you very much. Mr. Rollins, who'd ever known 30 years ago, I'm a young coach at Texas, A&M and you're Student Body President.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:07:53):

That's true.

Tommy Tuberville (02:07:54):

First time we met. Yep.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:07:55):

And we sat next to each other in lots of meetings. That's exactly right.

Tommy Tuberville (02:07:59):

And look where we're at now.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:08:00):

I know. I know. It's an amazing world.

Tommy Tuberville (02:08:02):

Congratulations.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:08:02):

Thank you.

Tommy Tuberville (02:08:04):

Congratulations. You're going to be awesome.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:08:05):

Thank you.

Tommy Tuberville (02:08:07):

But I don't want to sugarcoat this because my farmers back home are hurting.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:08:12):

Yes sir.

Tommy Tuberville (02:08:12):

We're in trouble. Our farmers are in trouble. Small farmers are selling right and left. I got a bill on the floor, actually I dropped it yesterday about keeping foreign adversaries from buying our farmland. We're selling it right and left, but I don't blame them because they can't make a profit. Row croppers in my state of Alabama are really getting killed. Cotton farmers last year, the input cost was about $400 an acre. They might've got $100 an acre out of their crop last year. That's the reason we had to do a supplemental right before Christmas, my phone was ringing off the wall. We have got to help our farmers, but they hate handouts. I'll tell you that right now. They hate it because they want to do their own work. So I'm glad you understand that being from Texas, you understand it?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:08:55):

Yes, sir.

Tommy Tuberville (02:08:58):

And again, it is a dire problem and it's not going to get fixed overnight. I'm looking forward to seeing who your team is going to be around you. I will tell you this, it's discouraging to know that you walk into the office building where you're going to have 3 or 4,000 employees and you can shoot a gun, not hit anybody. There's nobody there. Nobody's been working in the office for four years. I mean, it's embarrassing. It's absolutely embarrassing. Our farmers need help and we got nobody working at the office, so we have to get input costs down. That's not your job. 6, 7 years ago, a cotton picker cost 750,000. In Alabama today it's 1.5 million.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:09:43):

Yes sir.

Tommy Tuberville (02:09:44):

Fertilizer's going sky-high after the Ukraine war. I mean, it's embarrassing to where we've got. There's a $45 billion trade deficit in ag. 45 billion, and the only way that we can get commodity prices back up is handle that trade deficit. So that being said, we need dialogue. If confirmed, will you commit on doing dialogue with President Trump and the people around ag to get our farmers an opportunity to have a better price for their crop?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:10:17):

Yes, I will Senator and I so look forward to that. I think one of the things I read recently that only 43% of our ag producers are net positive, net income positive. That is unsustainable. We have to find a better way and it can't come always through government subsidies. We've got to expand the market. We've got to figure out input costs. One of President Trump's top priorities was food inflation. Well this comes before food inflation because this itself will drive the cost of food down if we do our jobs and if we're able to produce for our ag community the way that Coach, I believe that we can working together.

Tommy Tuberville (02:10:54):

What we don't want to happen is what's happened to our drug industry. We found in COVID, we look around going, how do we get people healthy? And all the drugs are made in China and we're going to end up in the same situation if we don't wake up and smell the roses. It's going to happen again. People are selling right and left and you can't blame them. Our small farms are going to end up being corporations like the packing houses. We only got three companies now that are meat packers and one of them is owned by China. We're headed in a direction of unknown, and it's going to take leadership from your office to get that back on the right track. Our forest industry in my state, $36 billion a year. Now with the USDA Forest Service under your purview, what priorities do you have for the health of our forests across the country, not just in Alabama? But we have to continue that to make sure that we have healthy wood because it is something that we're very proud of.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:11:53):

I know that's really important to Alabama and many of the other states that are represented here and across the United States Senate.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:12:00):

My commitment is to hire an A++ team. We've already announced our undersecretary, Mike Boren, for this position. I have great faith in his leadership. He is a businessman. And I think bringing to the table, hopefully with a quick confirmation process from all of you, he will bring to the table a team that will take our great firefighters in the forest service and hopefully realign and reorganize in a way that makes the forest service… Including forest management, more productive, more efficient, more effective, so that we don't have the issues that we've had in these last number of years, and especially for our great producers in your state and other states.

Tommy Tuberville (02:12:39):

Key word, forest management. Key two words. We've got to manage our forests, do it the right way. The American people across the country that are not in this business, they shouldn't have to pay for the mistakes that we make.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:12:53):

Correct.

Tommy Tuberville (02:12:54):

You know, we're broke. We're $36 trillion in debt, and it's getting worse-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:12:58):

That's right.

Tommy Tuberville (02:12:59):

… every day. And we're printing $80,000 a second, by the way,-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:13:02):

Yeah.

Tommy Tuberville (02:13:02):

… and we can't sustain that. Government's way too big.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:13:06):

Agreed.

Tommy Tuberville (02:13:08):

Disaster relief. If we've had problems with tornadoes or floods or whatever in my state, it takes at least three years at times to get any kind of disaster relief. Three years. And you know as well as I do, farmers borrow money from banks for a crop, and those bankers are looking around going, "Where's our money?"

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:13:28):

Mm-hmm.

Tommy Tuberville (02:13:28):

Well, we're waiting for disaster relief. And the bankers shouldn't have to deal with that, nor should the farmers, but I think there has to be a better plan for that at the end of the day. And again, I'm throwing all of your problems out to you, you probably don't want to hear that, but we got a lot of problems that need to be fixed.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:13:46):

Well, Senator, Coach, I believe that you and I having a conversation with our Commander in Chief… And the fact that it's taking three years to get relief, will be unacceptable to him… It is unacceptable to me, and I look forward to working with you to ensure that we do better, much, much better than that.

Tommy Tuberville (02:14:02):

Thank you. Good luck.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:14:02):

Thank you, sir. Thank you.

Chairman Boozman (02:14:05):

Senator Welch.

Senator Welch (02:14:10):

Thank you, thank you very much.

(02:14:13)
I don't want the Coach to be upset, but when you ask the question, "How did you both get here?" I kind of get it how you got here, I'm still trying to figure out about the Coach.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:14:25):

How coach got here?

Senator Welch (02:14:29):

But you did another thing that really is astonishing, Senator Cruz gave you a very nice introduction. And I didn't know something that he's kept on the down low, he actually has a sense of humor, so this is a pretty astonishing hearing.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:14:46):

It's a new day.

Senator Welch (02:14:48):

It is. And thank you for your visit to my office and your enthusiasm about rural America, and I'm so delighted to be working with our new ranking member and our new chair to try to strengthen rural America. And I share the, I think point of view strongly held by members of this committee that rural America really is about the great values and strength of America. Hard work, family,-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:15:12):

Yeah.

Senator Welch (02:15:13):

… community. And rural America has been under brutal pressure, and I think every single one of us wants to do everything we can to strengthen it, because a strong rural America is a strong America.

(02:15:25)
A couple of things. We have been really blessed in Vermont with a very responsive department of agriculture. The rural development organization in Vermont has helped us through the floods of July '23 and July '24, it has used opportunities to strengthen the economy for farmers. So I just want to make certain that some of the things that have really been helpful to us, we can have some confidence will continue should you be the new Secretary of Agriculture.

(02:15:57)
Number one, under the previous administration there was $40 million that went to Vermont for energy efficiency programs, and we don't have to have a debate about climate change and whether it's real or not, but my view is this. Agriculture and our farmers can help us deal with the weather events that are enormous, by doing things where they get income to sequester carbon. So without having the climate change discussion, I want to make certain that I can have some confidence that our farmers… Who are adopting regenerative agricultural practices, organic agriculture, are doing things that by all estimations make for good, healthy crops but also reduce carbon emissions. That we'll continue to make that possible, and they'll get paid to do it, not just be asked through regulations to bear the burden.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:16:56):

Senator Welch, thank you. Love visiting with you, and excited to come to Vermont, if invited. I loved our conversation. And we actually talked about the workforce at USDA, at least those that you have interacted with and worked with… And hearing from you how excellent the service was and the good job that they did, meant a lot to me, and I look forward to learning more and meeting them if confirmed.

(02:17:21)
I think it's important to recognize, Senator, I will always have an open dialogue with all of you. I think I gave all of you my cell phone.

Senator Welch (02:17:28):

No, you did.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:17:28):

I did.

Senator Welch (02:17:29):

Let me go on to the next one, because I just want to-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:17:31):

Sure.

Senator Welch (02:17:32):

… go through a few things.

(02:17:34)
Another issue is labor on the farm. We can't milk our cows, literally can't milk our cows without immigrant labor. And I'm for a secure border, I think all of us here are, but I'm also for legal immigration… And that is a real challenge for our dairy farmers, and I want to make sure that whatever we do to secure the border doesn't deprive our hard-working dairy farms and farmers access to the labor that they absolutely depend on. Can you comment on that?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:18:06):

Senator, yes, thank you. And I appreciate everyone's commitment to a secure border. You are not the only one on this side of the room that has made the point that that's really important, but I know there is great concern amongst our ag community on what immigration under President Trump will look like. My commitment to you is this, that understanding the data and understanding the impact of those in the ag community… Dairy farms, I think especially are concerned, but everybody is… Ensuring that we're working with the nominee over at labor, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, who is from Oregon-

Senator Welch (02:18:36):

So, we will work together on that?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:18:38):

Yes, sir.

Senator Welch (02:18:39):

And you appreciate the importance of having access to that labor for our dairy farms and others as well?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:18:44):

I know that these cows need to be milked 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It doesn't go away. If there's no one to milk them, that's big trouble.

Senator Welch (02:18:50):

All right. Another thing. A shared view, that a lot of the incredible challenges farmers have, are because they don't control the weather. And a lot of our small farmers are vegetable farmers. They don't have an insurance program that works for them. The insurance program for some of our vegetable folks, they would only get paid wholesale or reimbursed wholesale when they sell at farmer's markets, at retail. And also they would have to do this incredible documentation process, where they had to say how many tomatoes they had, how many beets they had.

(02:19:27)
I've introduced the WEATHER Act as an effort to try to streamline the reporting requirements… And I'm not going to ask you for the details on that, but we have to have insurance programs that help not just the big commodities… Which is a challenge and an obligation we have, but these smaller farmers, that are the future. Can I count on working with you on that?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:19:47):

Well, streamline? The word streamline is my love language, so yes, you and I will absolutely work together on that. And we've spent a lot of time this morning talking to everyone about restoring rural America and how important that is to the next 250 years of our country, that will happen because of our small family farms and our rural ranchers.

Senator Welch (02:20:06):

Another issue for young farmers, it's so hard for a young person to get into farming,-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:20:11):

Yes, sir.

Senator Welch (02:20:12):

… and largely because they can't get the farmland. And there's a lot of concern expressed here, and I share it, about Chinese possibly buying up. But you know who's buying it up? It's private equity. I want farmers to be able to buy a farmland. I mean, is that of concern to you? I know having access to farmland for young farmers is, but… China may be a threat, but private equity is a threat too. Care to comment?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:20:39):

Sir, thank you. The average farmer today, the average age is 58 years old. If we really think we're going to have a sustainable thriving ag community in 20 or 30 or 50 years, after you and I probably have gone to meet our maker, then we have to reverse that trend.

Senator Welch (02:20:53):

Okay, and the last topic in this round, rural broadband.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:20:57):

Yes, sir.

Senator Welch (02:20:57):

It has made such a difference for rural Vermont and for our farm communities, and your department has played a major role in facilitating that. We have to continue that and get that last barn on the longest dirt road wired, so they have the advantages that come with access to the internet. Care to comment?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:21:18):

100% agree.

Senator Welch (02:21:19):

Okay, thank you very much. Appreciate that.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:21:20):

Thank you, Senator. Thank you.

Chairman Boozman (02:21:21):

Senator Justice.

Senator Justice (02:21:27):

Well, first and foremost, to all those on this committee, I thank you for allowing me to be on the committee. I thank Leader Thune, and I thank anyone that was responsible for me being here.

(02:21:45)
I am a plain-spoken individual. I am hung up all the time on the truth, and I will promise you with all in me that I know a tremendous amount about agriculture. I think about… And Brooke, I can't call you Mrs. Rollins. I could call you Secretary,-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:22:10):

Oh, you can call me Brooke.

Senator Justice (02:22:11):

… and I've asked you over and over to call me-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:22:15):

Yes, sir.

Senator Justice (02:22:15):

… Jim. But I would just tell you just this, all that's going to fall in your empire is astronomical.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:22:25):

Mm-hmm.

Senator Justice (02:22:25):

That's all there is to it.

(02:22:28)
I am amazed with President Trump's nominees, and that's all there's to it.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:22:33):

Thank you.

Senator Justice (02:22:34):

They're qualified, they're absolutely experienced. They absolutely have what Brooke has. She's stuck on on. Anybody that can't see that, is absolutely not looking. She approaches it with positiveness and a big smile. And so all of you that came, especially all of her family, I am not amazed in any way. I know she's infectious around every last one of you, and absolutely, you will be a tremendous secretary.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:23:07):

Thank you, sir.

Senator Justice (02:23:11):

That's all there is to it.

(02:23:11)
Now, let me deviate just a little bit and let me just tell you just this. And this is my view, the American family farm has got to be protected like none other, right today, right now.

(02:23:27)
What we have, is the average size of the American family farm is 450 plus or minus acres. And you just think about it, what are they doing right now? What are they doing right now? Maybe in Wyoming it may very well be 30 below 0, and they're out on a snowmobile or a horse trying to feed their cattle. And maybe if there were a dairyman, wherever… Or lady, wherever it may be, there's never a day off, never a day off. The cows have to be milked. There is never a day off.

(02:24:08)
And whether it be maybe just that little farm that's sitting, trying to figure out how in the world… With fertilizer prices or whatever it may be, how in the world can we make ends come out, or ends work? And just think about this. They're probably driving a 12-year-old pickup truck. They're trying every way they possibly can, and every year they're in a Texas Hold'em game where they shove everything all in,-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:24:35):

That's right.

Senator Justice (02:24:36):

… every single year.

(02:24:38)
Now, with all that being said, just think about it. What happens if we lose our American small farm? Where do we go? Corporate interest, and on and on and on, they're a productive engine like you can't imagine on the planet. You can never imagine their productivity. They're a treasure to every single last one of us, and we best better protect them and keep them on that farm.

(02:25:12)
They can cash out today with their land, most all, and have a lifestyle that is so much better than their earnings every single year. And why do they do it? They do it because of one thing, they love what they do. They're the best of the best and they love what they do, and we got to keep them there and we got to protect them in every single way. I know it in my heart and I believe it with all my soul.

(02:25:48)
If you'll just step back and look. The grocery stores a mile long, food beyond belief. Now, I know we've had an increase in food prices and we need to do something about that if we possibly can, but with all that, we enjoy a luxury that is off the chart. What we throw away, many, many around the world would beg to have what we throw away. It's a luxury beyond belief, and that small farm that I'm talking about provides us that luxury.

(02:26:24)
Now, Brooke, I've really only got one question for you, and it's just this. And I don't have enough time to go into all the specifics, but from a value-added standpoint… If I could deviate just a second to forestry.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:26:40):

Mm-hmm.

Senator Justice (02:26:40):

And I look forward to telling you about this, because I've got a plan that really could very well help bring our furniture manufacturing, our cabinetry and our flooring manufacturing back from it being in China, Vietnam and Mexico… Where we've lost it all, for all practical purposes, back to us. We'll talk about that, but I want to hear that you are really supportive of value-added products, because it is so important to getting our manufacturing at home… And what President Trump absolutely believes and wants more than anything.

(02:27:21)
Again, I am all in with your nomination,-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:27:25):

Thank you.

Senator Justice (02:27:26):

… 1000%. You will do an amazing job, there's no question about it, but please comment on the value-added, please.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:27:34):

Sir, there is no excuse why everything in American agriculture… And America in general, but we're here to talk about ag, is not the best of the world. That everything that we work on is of the most excellent approach, and that we continue to build and feed and thrive and preserve the American heritage of the greatest farmers in the world.

Senator Justice (02:27:59):

I'm telling you, and everybody should pay close attention, she's a superstar.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:28:06):

Thank you, sir.

Senator Justice (02:28:06):

And we need her, we need her.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:28:08):

Thank you, sir. I'm humble.

Senator Justice (02:28:12):

So maybe it's premature, but congratulations.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:28:13):

As long as I have Babydog's support, that's the important thing.

Senator Justice (02:28:18):

Oh, you got Babydog with you every single day.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:28:19):

Thank you, sir. I so appreciate that. Thank you.

Senator Justice (02:28:22):

No, thank you.

Chairman Boozman (02:28:24):

Babydog was the difference in you getting on the committee or not.

Senator Justice (02:28:25):

Babydog-

Chairman Boozman (02:28:26):

We like you, but we really like Babydog.

Senator Justice (02:28:31):

… trumps me every single day.

Chairman Boozman (02:28:33):

Senator Warnock.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:28:33):

Good morning.

Senator Warnock (02:28:37):

I don't know how to follow that.

(02:28:39)
Welcome to the Committee.

Chairman Boozman (02:28:40):

Thank you, sir.

Senator Warnock (02:28:43):

Thank you, Chairman Boozman. I want to take a moment to congratulate you and ranking member Klobuchar on your appointments to lead this committee. I look forward to working with both of you. I've met with each of you, and I've enjoyed our relationship and the work that we tried to do and the work we've done.

(02:29:02)
Mrs. Rollins, good morning,-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:29:03):

Good morning.

Senator Warnock (02:29:04):

… and welcome to you, and also to your family and all of those who are here to support you… And congratulations on your nomination.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:29:10):

Thank you.

Senator Warnock (02:29:11):

I enjoyed also meeting with you last month to discuss your nomination and plans for USDA, and this morning I'd just like to follow up on some of the issues, many of which we've already discussed.

(02:29:23)
But first, it has come to my attention that a recent executive order has led to the potential termination of USDA's liaisons to our 1890 land-grant institutions, institutions like Fort Valley State University, in Fort Valley, Georgia. There is strong bipartisan support for these institutions. They've done an incredible job, often doing so much for so many with so very little for such a long time, that people… It's lost on people, the work that these institutions every day. I'm deeply concerned about this and the actions to shut out their voices at USDA.

(02:30:07)
Mrs. Rollins, if you were confirmed, will you commit to supporting our 1890 institutions?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:30:13):

Sir, I believe Prairie View A&M is one of those 1890 institutions, which I'm very familiar with… And partnered as a student at Texas A&M, and in the last administration, worked with. I am not familiar with exactly what you're speaking of, but my commitment to you is to find out and to continue a really important discussion and to learn more about the issue.

Senator Warnock (02:30:36):

Well, the executive order could lead to the potential termination of USDA's liaisons to these 1890 institutions, which helped them to navigate their relationship with the USDA. Can I have your commitment to protect those who serve these institutions at the USDA?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:30:57):

Again, sir, I would want to know more and understand more before I can make that commitment, but clearly those institutions are important… They are bipartisan supported, and you have my commitment to have a very robust dialogue at any moment, any time of day or night, to ensure that we have all the data as we're making any decisions.

Senator Warnock (02:31:15):

I appreciate that. I've had good relationships and good bipartisan work supporting these institutions, and I hope you'll-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:31:28):

Yes, sir.

Senator Warnock (02:31:28):

… keep your eye on that issue.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:31:29):

I will.

Senator Warnock (02:31:30):

Last year I worked hard with my colleagues, in a bipartisan manner to provide $21 billion to help farmers recover from natural disasters, like Hurricane Helene. Farmers, as you know, do incredible work. It's a tough business. There's so much you don't control, the margins are narrow, and so I do everything I can to protect my growers in Georgia.

(02:31:52)
I cannot overstate how critical it is for USDA to distribute this assistance, this disaster assistance, to Georgia farmers as quickly as possible, but also as equitably as possible. If confirmed… Briefly, because I want to get through these questions, how will you work to ensure disaster assistance is distributed both swiftly and equitably?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:32:14):

Yes, sir. Thank you, and I'll try to answer quickly so we can go on. The day I got the call from President Trump, it was Saturday, November 23rd. We were in our motorhome, traveling across the country to an Aggie football game. Within a few hours of accepting the nomination, I began to immediately pivot to, how do we distribute this disaster and so important economic aid… Working with a few of the senators on this committee.

(02:32:36)
Clearly I am not confirmed yet, so this is going to await my arrival, but in the meantime, sir, we've already announced the undersecretary… Who worked on this in the last Trump administration, who is already building the team who distributed these funds, so they know what they're doing. We're not reinventing the wheel.

Senator Warnock (02:32:51):

Well, will you work with our state agriculture commissioner to ensure Georgia producers, including our foresters, have the support they need from USDA to get that assistance without having to jump through a bunch of bureaucratic hoops?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:33:06):

Of course.

Senator Warnock (02:33:07):

And will you also commit to equitably getting that assistance to all eligible farmers, all eligible farmers, including those who've been historically left out of USDA assistance often due to discrimination?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:33:20):

Sir, we will follow the law and ensure that that is the case.

Senator Warnock (02:33:23):

Is that a yes or a no?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:33:24):

Yes.

Senator Warnock (02:33:26):

So, let me move on to the next subject. Thanks so much. Fighting hunger has long been a part of my life's work, long before I was elected to the Senate. As you know, I'm a pastor, and the one miracle story that's in all the Gospels… All four, is the Feeding of the 5,000.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:33:46):

That's right.

Senator Warnock (02:33:47):

And so, I constantly hear from Georgia families about how their dollar just doesn't go as far at the grocery store as it used to. The average Georgian participating in SNAP, a food assistance program that provides critical nutrition aid to our most vulnerable families, has about $6.15 a day to spend on food. In your view, is $6.15 a day adequate to avoid hunger for Georgia families?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:34:15):

Sir, this is a supplemental program, I am just getting my arms around it. There is few that will be in my role, if confirmed, that have a passion for this more than I do. Serving those who are most in need, as you and I discussed in your office, is a driving force of my entire life. It almost sent me to seminary, but I ended up in public policy instead. So you have my wholehearted commitment to look and ensure that the people who need this the most are receiving it in the best way possible, but at the same time ensuring that all of the tax dollars that are spent on it are also spent in the best way possible.

Senator Warnock (02:34:54):

As these families struggle, one of the things that I'm concerned about are proposals to slash this critical assistance and create additional work verification red tape for families participating in these programs. Do you think creating more bureaucratic red tape for families will help them purchase nutritious food?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:35:12):

I think it's extremely important that we take a wholesale look at every one of these programs, and ensure that they are serving the people that are needing the programs and that they are the safety net they're truly set out to be. Obviously I do not like the words bureaucracy or red tape, but ensuring that we have set up the appropriate lifelines in the appropriate structure, so that we can get these resources to the families that need them the most.

Senator Warnock (02:35:37):

As we talk about work requirements, and I support work… I was raised by a father and a mother who had a serious work ethic, but we want to help these families have a basic safety net. Most poor people are children. I think it's important to remember that, most poor people are children. SNAP lifts children, seniors, veterans, and folks with disabilities out of poverty, and has proven to reduce healthcare costs and stimulate our local economies.

(02:36:09)
If you are confirmed, I hope we can find ways to work together to ensure our most vulnerable families and our neighbors can afford groceries. I think as someone, again, who preaches the parable of… Not the parable, but the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000, I think it's the right thing to do, but I also think it's the smart thing to do.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:36:29):

Yes, sir. You have my commitment. And my friend, Dr. Alveda King is here, and we have spoken of that multiples of time. So, looking forward to working with everyone.

Senator Warnock (02:36:37):

I'm her family's pastor.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:36:39):

Yes, sir, I'm very well aware. Thank you

Chairman Boozman (02:36:43):

Senator Grassley.

Senator Grassley (02:36:45):

Congratulations. Like other senators, I think you'll do a good job.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:36:52):

Thank you, sir.

Senator Grassley (02:36:52):

I want to start out by thanking you like Senator Durbin did, for during the Trump administration working with us on the First Step Act. You were actively involved in a lot of those negotiations between Democrats and Republicans on the Hill here, as well as between us and the first Trump administration. You worked hard. I noticed after you took the oath, the first question you got was, "You going to answer our letters?" Remember what I told you in my office?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:37:27):

Oh, yes, sir.

Senator Grassley (02:37:28):

As I tell every confirmed person coming to my office, that you ought to say, "Maybe," because I pointed out to you how I had 158 letters to the Justice Department that are still unanswered.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:37:43):

Yes, sir.

Senator Grassley (02:37:43):

So they said, "Yes," but they turned out to be liars, and that's true of Republican and Democrat administrations generally. So I hope since you said, "I do," you'll tell all your colleagues in the cabinet the same darn thing, or they're going to be liars.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:38:00):

Yes, sir. I hear you loud and clear, and I have to believe with a 100,000 employees at USDA, we'll be able to answer your letters. To the best of my ability, sir,-

Senator Grassley (02:38:10):

Okay.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:38:10):

… but yes.

Senator Grassley (02:38:11):

You bet.

(02:38:11)
Now, at least one other person, my colleague Senator Ernst, has brought up the importance of whistleblowers, the information she got from them. I'm not sure that I want to ask you a question, I just want to tell you what is on my mind. And that is, you've got tens of thousands of people working under you, you can't know what they do, and you ought to listen to whistleblowers. And it's not you yourself listening to whistleblowers, it's you establishing a culture within your agency that middle management's going to listen to whistleblowers, because then they don't have to come and bother me. I got 38 investigations going. Most of it have come from whistleblower information about fraud, or about the law not being followed, or misspending of money and all that. So listen to whistleblowers, will you?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:39:04):

Yes, sir, you have my 100% commitment. We talked about it in your office, and I really look forward to that.

Senator Grassley (02:39:09):

Yeah.

(02:39:12)
The next thing, is the legal term actively engaged in farming is not enforced. We got too many people on Wall Street getting farm payments that shouldn't be getting them, so I want you to make sure that all of this manipulation that has gone on in the Department of Agriculture… Under both Republicans and Democrats, to dilute the term actively engaged… And I'm being a little facetious when I say this, but you ought to at least have dirt under your fingernails if you're going to get payments from the taxpayers for your farming operation. So I expect actively engaged to be fully enforced by you, and whatever, however it's been diluted, you ought to take a look at it and make sure that it is stiffer than what it otherwise was.

(02:40:14)
And then when we get into negotiations on a five-year farm bill… I don't expect you to answer this now, but just let me tell you, there can be tremendous savings to the taxpayers. And you can even discuss this with Mr. Musk of DOGE, and you can discuss it with people at OMB, if you can put a cap on what one farmer can get from the farm program, so we aren't subsidizing big farmers to get bigger. And I got nothing wrong with the marketplace working for people to get as big as they want to get, but we shouldn't be subsidizing.

(02:40:55)
The whole point of an agricultural five-year farm bill safety net, is to protect people that are medium and small-sized farmers, that can't control what happens to them… Whether it's a natural disaster, or a Carter grain embargo, or some war in Kiev. Big farmers can handle that, but small farmers can't. And that seems to me for the same reason we put out disaster relief for farmers in the bill that just passed before Christmas and you're going to administer, they're the same reason that we have a safety net for farmers on prices generally and things beyond their control.

(02:41:43)
So I try every farm bill to get this done, and the most successful farm bill I had… And I hope I'm successful in this farm bill, was 2015, when I got a cap put on in both the House and Senate, in exactly the same language. And it shouldn't have been diluted at all or changed at all when it goes to conference, because those are the rules of the conference, but the congressman from Texas… I don't know his name, that was chairman of the Ag Committee at that time… And you probably know who he was, he did not like it and he diluted it until it was practically meaningless at this point.

(02:42:27)
So if you want to save some taxpayers money, look at that issue when I bring it up again.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:42:34):

Thank you, sir.

Senator Grassley (02:42:35):

Another thing, is we had in the first Trump administration, we had a couple times in the Biden administration, use money from the commodity credit corporation that I don't think should have been used. And the power of the purse, as you know, rests with Congress, under Article I of the Constitution, and money can't be spent without authority of Congress. And billions have been wasted that way, and I hope you don't get involved in wasting those dollars again.

(02:43:20)
I'll end with the Packers and Stockyards Act. I think it's stronger than anything that the Justice Department can do under antitrust laws to protect the welfare of the farmer, to make sure that the marketplace is working. And thank God, Vilsack, just before he left office, put out some regulations that will help enforce powers of the Packers and Stockyards Act… Particularly to protect livestock producers in highly concentrated areas of agriculture, or the Poultry Grower Payment System, the Capital Improvement Payment System. The American Farm Bureau Federation has spoken positively about these issues. I think there were some more that are on the books that maybe you can take a look at, that he didn't get around to putting out because maybe they're a little more controversial. But the Packers and Stockyards Act is the most effective tool to make sure that the marketplace works for the American farmer. Thank you.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:44:29):

Thank you, Senator. And I am really looking forward to working with you and continuing to move forward, and especially focusing on our small family farms in rural America.

Chairman Boozman (02:44:39):

Senator Slotkin.

Senator Slotkin (02:44:40):

Thank you. Congratulations, Mr. Chairman and Madam Ranking Chairman. I'm honored to be here as the successor of Debbie Stabenow, our esteemed former chairman, the queen of Michigan agriculture. We miss her, and I have really, really big shoes to fill there.

(02:44:56)
Thank you for our conversation in my office. I appreciate your

Sen. Slotkin (02:45:00):

… your positive approach to meeting with everybody. And I have the honor to live on my family farm, which used to be beef cattle, is now soy and corn alternatively. But I'm also a former CIA officer, a Pentagon official, so I really come to the Ag Committee with a sense that food security is national security, and the United States should always be able to feed itself by itself. And everything flows from there. If people agree, then there's a lot of policies that become pretty clear of the sale of our land to foreign governments or to private equity, all of those things. So I think that's the approach that I tend to take.

(02:45:40)
I'm also from Michigan. We're not Kansas. We're not Iowa. We are specialty crops. We have the second most diverse agricultural sector in the country after California, and we take pride in not doing monocropping and doing a lot of fruits and vegetables and a lot of other things. So this is why I'm particularly concerned about the tariffs. Everyone's talking about tariffs. Mr. Trump is throwing them around, and I just want to review the bidding to make sure particularly with your agency that we're all on the same page on what happened the last time President Trump put on tariffs, what happened specifically to our farmers.

(02:46:20)
So just to review the bidding, President Trump announced 25% tariffs on Chinese products, batteries, TVs, medical devices. Again, I certainly understand the instinct as a CIA officer. I want to push back on China. China retaliated and put 25% tariffs on soybeans, fruits, pork, and some other items. Then we got into a trade war. We started adding more things to the list. They started adding more things to the list. It went on and on and on and back and forth. Suddenly, our farmers across the country are screaming bloody murder because the markets that they used to have access to, no one wanted to buy our stuff because it had that 25% tariff. We felt that very acutely.

(02:47:02)
So what did we do? Because we felt under the Trump administration, people rightfully felt like our farmers were getting the shaft here, they raided the CCC account, the emergency rainy day account that you will have control over for $23 billion to give subsidies to our farmers. So we put on the tariff, got into a trade war, ended up our farmers were in trouble, we paid them off. And everyone's here has said no farmer wants a subsidy. They want to work, right? They want to get paid a fair rate for their crop. That emergency fund is the same fund that helps us with things like avian flu that we're now dealing with all over the country.

(02:47:44)
So you can imagine as a Michigander, the throwing around of tariffs, particularly with Canada, Mexico, a bunch of other places, I am trepidatious that this is going to come back to our farmers. And when you get confirmed, and it looks like you will, you will swear an oath to the Constitution of the United States, not to President Trump. So can you say, I know you've said it but for the Michiganders watching, that you will throw your body in front of the bus to make sure that any political talking point on tariffs that may sound good is actually truly tested against how it will impact our farmers like it was not last time around?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:48:25):

Senator, I appreciate your passion. I share it, and I think we are similar in a lot of ways. And yes, my commitment is that there will be no sleeping, that we will work around the clock to ensure that our ag communities across this country are represented in those discussions and at the table. And I will do everything in my power to elevate, preserve, honor, conserve that backbone of America.

Sen. Slotkin (02:48:55):

Yeah. I just want to know that you have a good relationship with President Trump and that's a value add, so use it to help our farmers, not just a political talking point. We all want to punch back on China, most of us, but it's got to fit reality here and not end up boomeranging on us like it did last time.

(02:49:13)
Next is avian flu. We talked about this as well in my office. Michigan has been dealing with this. Lots of states around the country are dealing with it. We've had human beings, a few getting ill, one passed away. We now see it in cats, household pets that are eating birds that have it, that kind of thing. And what we've seen, I think Michigan has gotten decently high marks for handling it well because we've cooperated with the federal government, right? But there's a lot of folks around the country that are not so friendly with the federal government. You are going to be the federal government having to put some muscle behind some of our rules so that we don't see the spread, right? Again, right now you cannot get a dozen eggs around Holly, Michigan where I live for less than 4.69 a dozen. Used to be two bucks. So please tell me what you're going to do in the federal government role that you're about to take to make sure that we stem the spread of avian flu, even to states and farmers who are not so friendly with the federal government.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:50:23):

Yeah. Thank you, Senator. And I do remember our conversation is certainly a top priority. I know in my opening remarks, it is one of my top four priorities on day one, putting the right team in place to ensure that what you discussed and outlined is happening. I do believe that with my depth of experience with working at all levels of government, specifically at the state level. I've been working closely… All the, I believe probably mostly Republican, maybe all Republican, but all the Ag Commissioners, I'm already in contact with, and if confirmed, will continue to work closely with them. I think there's no doubt that the all-of-government approach, working with the stakeholder community but also the state and local officials is going to be extremely important. And to your point about food security at the top of your remarks, that remains paramount, I think, for all of us.

Sen. Slotkin (02:51:13):

And then lastly, I'll just echo some of Senator Warnock's comments. We have seen inversions of the farm bill that were created in the past year, both in the House and the Senate, that SNAP is usually the bill payer for at least part of it. And cuts to SNAP and then additional subsidies to some of our farmers, frankly, particularly farmers down south. I understand that that's popular. I would just ask you again to look into your heart. If the majority of poor people are children, that's not a work requirement that they can meet, right? So please just remember the children and be thoughtful about our approach on SNAP, not just again a political talking point. Thank you. I yield back.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:51:54):

I will, Senator. Thank you.

Sen. Slotkin (02:51:55):

Thank you.

Senator Boozman (02:51:58):

Senator Fisher.

Sen. Fischer (02:52:00):

Thank you, Senator Boozman, and congratulations on your gavel. Look forward to working with you and with the ranking member. Thank you.

(02:52:08)
Ms. Rollins, so good to see you. I really, really appreciated you coming to the office last month and the great discussion that we had. As you know, the agricultural industry is the economic engine of Nebraska. We grow a lot of corn and beans and wheat and sugar beets and livestock, so we stand the necessity of having that strong economy for our state, that food security, how important it is for our country, and I look forward to working with you in the future on that.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:52:47):

Thank you.

Sen. Fischer (02:52:48):

You noted in your testimony that we must demand strong and steady markets for our agricultural bounty, and this is a statement that I hear consistently from our producers as well. One of those really important markets for Nebraska's agriculture is biofuels. In his day one actions, President Trump emphasized the need for our country to be energy-dominant. The president has long recognized that ag producers have a role to play in producing abundant homegrown energy, and he took steps in his executive order declaring a national energy emergency so that we can continue to allow for the sale of E15 year-round. And I've long led an effort to make this policy permanent and I look forward to working with my colleagues to deliver on that part of the president's agenda.

(02:53:47)
We know that there's going to be a number of other biofuel decisions that will be made in the coming months that will have significant impacts on the biofuel market. I know you've heard from a number of my colleagues on this committee about the importance of that. Can you just speak briefly about how you view the importance of biofuel markets for our farmers?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:54:13):

I will. And Senator, thank you. I loved being in your office and meeting Fred Fischer, and I'm really look forward to hopefully having more conversations in your office and in your home state of Nebraska, which is one of the shining stars of our country.

(02:54:27)
In the last few months since the announcement was made that I was going to be hopefully have confirmed joining this administration and the cabinet as the head of USDA, I have had multiples of conversations with many of you on the committee and outside the committee. Your governor flew to Texas to give me a couple of hours of his time to make sure I understood specifically within your state, but frankly how this affects so much of the Midwest in our corn states.

(02:54:54)
My commitment is to defend and protect and fight for all of American agriculture. Clearly in the last administration, this issue was under the National Economic Council, Larry Kudlow, so I didn't manage it under the Domestic Policy Council. But I was certainly in a lot of the meetings, which there were a lot of meetings. President Trump would tell you in the Oval Office about this. His executive order in the last few days mentioning biofuels as part of his all-of-the-above strategy to reclaim energy dominance across the world.

Sen. Fischer (02:55:25):

Right. You know-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:55:25):

It is important.

Sen. Fischer (02:55:26):

… President Trump was very generous with his time and his previous time in the Oval Office. And he's correct. We had a lot of meetings in the Oval Office, so I know.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:55:37):

I think he said 27.

Sen. Fischer (02:55:38):

Truly, and he would like to get this issue settled as well. I thought maybe we would last in the CR, but we'll continue to push for that. What we've seen over the last four years and what I've heard has been a lot of disappointment from Nebraskans about the lack of any kind of trade agenda from the Biden administration. In fact, for the first time in decades we've had an agricultural trade deficit, and as you said earlier, it's projected to hit a record-breaking $45 billion. I understand there can be a variety of factors that impact a trade deficit, but I am concerned that part of this stems from there being really any kind of clear agricultural trade agenda from the last administration. We cannot see that happen again. Can you talk about how you would both hold our current trading partners accountable and the role that you will or that you would want to see USDA play in developing these new export markets?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:56:52):

Yes, Senator. And that 45 billion, what's remarkable about that is 42% of that, it's just in the last year.

Sen. Fischer (02:56:58):

Yes.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:56:58):

So the wheels are falling off and it is very, very important that the wheels get put back on as soon as possible. I think for those that know me for a long time, but even Senator, you and I have just gotten to know each other in the recent months, know that I am a relentless cheerleader for whatever it is that I have been called to do. And for this moment in my life and to meet this moment, as Scripture says, I am called to take agriculture to preserve our rural communities and take our products to the world and work around the clock to ensure that that sort of trade deficit begins to peel back, and hopefully by the end of our time here in the next four years, is completely gone. And in fact, we are back in the positive.

(02:57:43)
And I believe we can do that. I mentioned earlier, I think, President Trump is the consummate deal-maker. His heart for rural America and for our farmers and ranchers, I think, will hopefully lead the way. I certainly will be right next to him whispering in his ear as we move forward on this, and I think and hope and pray that we can begin to solve for this immediately.

Sen. Fischer (02:58:02):

Great. Another area that I focused on is how precision ag technology can help our farmers and ranchers to achieve better yields and reduce environmental impact, improve economic returns. I've had a number of bills on that and I'm going to be reintroducing and including hopefully in the farm bill that we work on.

(02:58:24)
Additionally, myself and really the entire Nebraska delegation along with the University of Nebraska at Lincoln have been working in a very close partnership with the Ag Research Service on the National Center for Resilience and Regenerative Precision Ag at the University Innovation campus. And last May, we broke ground on that facility, and I hope that I can continue to work with you to make sure that we get that facility completed.

(02:58:55)
Can I get your commitment to continue working with me on this facility? Can I get your commitment to come to Nebraska? We had Sonny Perdue out at the ranch and had a great barbecue with neighbors. We can do that. And then another trip, we can get you to Lincoln and see the ARS facility, what we're doing there.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:59:13):

That would be my great honor.

Sen. Fischer (02:59:15):

Great. Thank you.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (02:59:16):

Thank you, Senator.

Senator Boozman (02:59:18):

Senator Lujan.

Sen. Lujan (02:59:20):

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Representative, welcome to the committee, representative Kerwin. I know that most folks have been recognizing you, but we just want to say welcome. I look forward to working with you in whatever capacity we can. My late father also served in the New Mexico legislature and very much appreciated some of those good projects that he had with some of the new family, if you will, the extended family of ag members from Texas I got to know as a young person. So welcome to the committee.

(02:59:50)
Mrs. Rollins, you for being here. I very much appreciated the conversation that we had in the office as well. And one of the areas I shared in our conversation is something that I hold deeply as I express to you, which is that every American should be able to have food on their table. No one should go hungry in America, no matter what zip code or area code they live in or no matter how much money they make. I appreciated my colleagues raising issues in some of these areas with nutritional programs. And given the important role that the Secretary of Agriculture plays in administering federal nutritional programs, I'd like to better understand your vision for them.

(03:00:32)
Now, I did my due diligence to go through the America First Policy Institute's documents, but I wasn't able to find anything that I could digest, it's probably the wrong word to use, when it comes-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:00:44):

No pun intended.

Sen. Lujan (03:00:46):

… t addressing hunger in America.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:00:46):

Yes.

Sen. Lujan (03:00:48):

Do you agree that in America, that… Let me ask it this way. Do you believe that in America that is truly great that our children don't go hungry at night?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:01:00):

Yes.

Sen. Lujan (03:01:04):

Updates to the Thrifty Food Plan in 2021, a program that you'd have a lot of say over, lifted about 2.4 million SNAP participants, including 1 million children out of poverty. That's good. It's not great yet because we haven't done it all, but it's a good start. Now, Ms. Rollins, yes or no, will you commit to opposing any cuts to SNAP that would prevent Americans, including millions of children, from putting food on their table?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:01:34):

Senator, probably not surprising to you, I can't commit to that. Obviously it is of utmost importance to me, and you and I discussed that, that we solve this, that it isn't just hunger, it's nutrition as well for so many of our children that don't have access to those programs. But I also know that I have a duty to the taxpayer who is funding in significant numbers those programs. I sincerely believe, Senator, that working together and working with other members of this committee, it's important to Chairman Boozman as well, that we can find a solution that may or may not end up in cuts. I don't know. That is something I need to spend a more time on, research the data, meet with more people. I can't make that commitment to you today, but I can make the commitment to you for a lot of time, a lot of thought, a lot of conversation as we move down that road.

Sen. Lujan (03:02:24):

I appreciate that. I'm always reminded that budgets are a reflection of values, depending on how those budgets are put forth as well. And I certainly hope that in America, while we all have a responsibility, our fiscal responsibility, that our priorities would say children shouldn't go hungry in America. And I hope that's something that we can find some commonality on down the road.

(03:02:49)
Now, I want to drill into something more specific, which is a program called WIC. It's a program for women, infants, and children, also a food program. It's one of those acronym programs you talked about that are over at the Department of Agriculture. For decades, Republicans and Democrats have supported full funding for this program, meaning that no eligible mother child who applies for the program has turned away in your capacity as secretary. Is this a program that we can count on your support with?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:03:19):

I look forward, I believe, that's one of the 16 nutrition programs across the United States Department of Agriculture purview. I have not spent as much time as I hope to in the coming days and weeks once confirmed to really dig into that. But clearly my heart, this administration, I believe speaking for the full administration, clearly America is the place where everyone should have the opportunity to be part of a safety net when needed. And WIC, I realize, is an important part of that safety net.

Sen. Lujan (03:03:51):

I appreciate that response very much. Now in the area of specialty crops, everyone here brags on whose his best? We have it.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:04:00):

It's New Mexico.

Sen. Lujan (03:04:01):

I'm going to address that right away. I share the concern that many have shared up here today around small farms. 53% of New Mexico farms are 50 acres or less. The one that I'm on is under five. I'm concerned as well with what's been happening with small farms across America, whether it's water rights that are being gobbled up and taken off for something else, away from agricultural water rights or who's buying them or what they're turning into. It's one of the reasons I introduced a piece of legislation with Senator Moran that's a Farmer-to-Farmer Education Act. I will never forget a conversation I had with a grower back home where I was asking about USDA programs years back and he said, "Well, we don't do so well qualifying for those programs and all the rest." And I said, "Well, you're doing okay. You're doing better than most. Tell me how." And he said, "I have to learn how to farm USDA."

(03:04:59)
Maybe that works for some, but not for all.mI agree with everyone that's talked about the red tape that exists for some of these programs. We've got to find a better way. These are people that are spending time producing food, growing food. They shouldn't be stuck behind a desk trying to figure out what document needs to go here, what document needs to go there. We've got to find a better way. So I appreciate your commitment already in that particular area and your commitment to work with small farms.

(03:05:26)
The other area that I raised in our meeting, and I actually just got off the phone with someone, so I apologize for excusing myself, but the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon fire. This is a fire that started a few years ago that became the largest fire in the state of New Mexico's history. What surprises a lot of folks, and I appreciate my Republican and Democratic colleagues here for supporting me and helping to create a fund specific for this fire, this fire started as a prescribed burn. My brother actually called in to try to burn our ditches and some things around our house. And you have to call the local fire department is the way our permit works. And you call them up and you say, "Can I burn today?" And they'll tell you, "Nope, no burning today." He got a no burn the day that they started this try burn, got out of control. So then I got told by folks around USDA, "Well, very few percentage of our fires, prescribed fires, turned into big burns." About two months later, guess what happened in New Mexico? We had another one.

(03:06:29)
And then there was an investigation, and then that investigation showed that rather than using the infrared technology that we've all helped fund, some folks put their hands on the deal and it didn't feel warm and they walked away and the winds kicked up. And we know what happens when a little coal gets a little bit of a breeze. Sometimes we do it ourselves. Give it a little breath. There's got to be a better way about ensuring that the technology that we can secure, the firefighters are going to get paid properly, but that we're going to follow this so that this does not happen anywhere in America again.

(03:07:05)
And I'll close with this, Mr. Chairman. I very much appreciate Mrs. Rollins, your commitment to working with Governor Noem or with FEMA and making sure when these programs exist, that money gets out the door to the families that need it most. So just thank you for that. Good luck with everything. And again, Representative, honored to have you here today. Thank you, Mr. Senator.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:07:24):

Thank you, Senator.

Senator Boozman (03:07:26):

Senator Moran.

Sen. Moran (03:07:27):

Mr. Chairman, I would defer to the senator from South Dakota as the majority leader. Otherwise, I will feel too much pressure to be brief.

Senator Boozman (03:07:34):

Well, they told me that the majority leader was here and it is customary that he goes, but he was trying to show his servant leadership and let you go.

Sen. Moran (03:07:47):

Well, I was trying to do the same thing and I defer and yield to the senator from South Dakota.

Senator Boozman (03:07:53):

Okay. Senator Thune, thank… Again, I think it's a real tribute. The Senator Thune right now is a busy person, trying to get the railroad going here and doing a lot of different things. But it just shows how important agriculture is, not only to him but to his state.

Sen. Thune (03:08:11):

Yeah, Moran's just trying to get one up on me here, you know that. But thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you, Ms. Rollins, for your willingness to serve. This issue is incredibly important as you already know to folks on this committee. It's the number one industry in our state of South Dakota. And so we know you're going to be great in this job and look forward to moving you along and getting you confirmed and off to work.

(03:08:33)
There are several things that need to be worked on. We have a record trade deficit in agriculture-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:08:38):

I saw it.

Sen. Thune (03:08:38):

… which we've never seen that before. It's been one area of our economy that we've always had trade surpluses. The emergency relief program has not worked well. There have been a lot of glitches that need to be smoothed out. We want you to jump on that one as well. And I would say among the issues that I want to touch on quickly, and you've been here forever, and we want to, I'll try and keep this brief so my colleague from Kansas can ask questions. But I want to touch on a couple of things that are really important in my home state.

(03:09:09)
As you know, I've been a long-time supporter of mandatory country of origin labeling for beef products. And I would just say that South Dakota cattle producers work really, really hard and tirelessly to produce some of the highest quality beef in the world. The system in which producers operate needs to be fair and transparent, which is I think it's critical that we take the steps to pass legislation tasking USDA and USTR to find a path forward on mandatory country of origin labeling. So if confirmed, will you commit to working closely with my office as well as with the US Trade Rep to ensure a WTO-compliant path forward for mandatory country of origin labeling?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:09:46):

Yes, sir. I look forward to that and hopefully I can be a value-add and a consensus-driven approach to that. And I really appreciate your leadership and passion for this.

Sen. Thune (03:09:55):

Thank you, appreciate that very much. We look forward to that.

(03:09:58)
As you know, the Black Hills is an important timber producer, and timber processors and communities depend upon the Forest Service for nearly 80% of their raw material. And in turn, the Forest Service depends on the capacity of the processors to care for and manage the forest. And I know this has been touched on already, but I want to talk specifically about the Black Hills.

(03:10:21)
Since 2019, the timber sale program on the Black Hills Forest has been cut drastically. In fact, sales announced for this fiscal year are approximately 25% of what is allowed for in the current forest plan in 19… Or I should say in 2021. One of the three primary sawmills in the black Hills closed, citing a lack of US Forest Service. Timber sales is the primary factor. And today, the remaining sawmills are operating at 50%, incurring financial losses in trucking and material from other states. This is not sustainable. The Biden administration policies have decimated the timber industry, forest products industry in the Black Hills of South Dakota. And it's not sustainable for companies, communities, or for frankly for that matter, for the national forest. We have got to manage our forest in a way that reduces the wildfire risk that exists out there. We're starting to see evidence of another pine beetle economic or epidemic in the Black Hills.

(03:11:24)
And so I guess my question is, if confirmed, will you commit to work with us quickly, and the entire delegation of the Black Hills National Forest Footprint and the forest products industry to understand the issues at hand and to give much needed attention and priority and hopefully relief to what is a very dire situation in the Black Hills National Forest?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:11:45):

Yes, sir. I've become acutely aware that not just in your home state but in multiples of home states, this industry is just being decimated by current policies. I believe I speak for the larger administration and President Trump. That is unacceptable. And whatever we need to do within reason and within the law to turn the ship on that, you have my full commitment and as much time as I can possibly give, building the best team, getting our undersecretary in this arena confirmed as soon as possible. But we've already begun the path forward on that and I really look forward to working with you ongoing and hopefully moving very quickly.

Sen. Thune (03:12:22):

Thank you. We quickly to get you confirmed and hopefully the people who will have a direct responsibility for this. It is that urgent. I mean, this is an emergency. I can't tell you people in the lack Hills and the jobs that go with it are really desperate.

(03:12:37)
All right, finally on just the beginning farmers, it's challenging I think as you know because of some of the barriers to entry to get into agriculture. And so making that easier, not harder and less expensive, not more expensive is something that we really focused on. I've got a bill with Senator Klobuchar, which we can talk to you later about. But crop insurance has always been the foundation, the cornerstone of the safety net. And we've got other programs that we try to refine each time we do a farm bill.

(03:13:06)
And this farm bill, which the chairman will lead us through, will be my fifth. And so as we do that, I would encourage you to work with us to find ways to strengthen and fortify the existing safety net programs and look at ways that we can provide incentives and encourage beginning farmers and young people who desire and aspire to become involved in production agriculture to be able to do so.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:13:32):

Sir, so thank you for that. The average age of the farmer in America is 58 years old. That is not sustainable. If we hope to revivify and restore our rural communities and go back to our family farms, we have to address this immediately. And whatever that looks like, whatever all of the wholesale approach could be or should be, I will be the biggest advocate, the biggest cheerleader. I'll be in the White House all the time talking about it all across America, working with all of you to fix that. I think it's of dire importance for the future of our country.

Sen. Thune (03:14:01):

Great. Thank you, Ms. Rollins, and thank you again for your willingness to serve. Mr. Chairman, thank you.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:14:07):

Thank you so much, Senator.

Senator Boozman (03:14:10):

Well, we're still on the first round. Senator Schiff's already gone, so Senator Moran.

Sen. Moran (03:14:16):

Chairman, thank you. And Senator Thune, thank you. I'm pleased to be a new member of the Senate Agriculture Committee and it took a waiver that probably involved the majority of leader's approval, so I'm pleased to now have that debt clear.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:14:30):

Yes, yes. You're all free.

Sen. Moran (03:14:31):

I'm all free. Ms. Rollins, thank you very much for the conversation we had in the office. Thank you for your interest in serving. I want to run through I hope maybe five things that I want to talk about briefly. Some of which we did talk in person, but first of all, it's been described here the dangerous and dramatic circumstances that farmers and ranchers find themselves in across the country. It's certainly true in Kansas. We have the same difficulties that everybody else has across the country with high input costs and low commodity prices. But I would add that almost 80% of the counties in Kansas are in a drought circumstance. And so you add to the problems that we can't grow a crop is dramatic. This is the least amount of wheat harvested in Kansas since 1961.

(03:15:25)
And so there are significant challenges. It highlights what Senator Thune said about the importance of our risk management program crop insurance. And it is perhaps as important as anything else that we will do, but our failure to pass a farm bill, and one of the reasons that I've excited about to be on the Senate Agriculture Committee is this really does have to be our shot at getting the farm bill done. I can't imagine there can be another excuse and we'll have an administration that's cheering us on. And Senator Boozman and Senator Klobuchar are two people, I think, that we'll see work together and I pledge to do my part to accomplish that.

(03:16:04)
But as a result of no farm build and all these other problems, we pass disaster assistance, economic and natural disaster. I just want to again remind you the timeliness. Our farmers are going to their banks, bankers have been to their bankers. There is not time for a farmer to have to wait to see what the consequences were. If we could predict, if USDA could tell farmers how the program is going to be administered even before the checks are determined, that would be very valuable as they put it into their planning process, helpful to them and helpful to their banker.

(03:16:37)
But I would remind you that in my view, and I think my colleagues, certainly my farmers at home, the way that disaster assistance was implemented in 2020, I'm sorry in 2022, did not help the farmers who suffered the greatest losses. So the way that your predecessor implemented the disaster payments was very damaging, very discouraging, very disappointing. And we would ask you to do so as to implement, as the payments were determined in the 2018, 2019 crop years, USDA disperse the way that… And in addition to asking that question, you would also be complying with Congressional Law and Intent.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:17:23):

Yes, sir.

Sen. Moran (03:17:23):

We worked hard to make clear that whoever the Secretary of Agriculture was in whatever administration, they couldn't go back and do it the way that provided almost very little disaster assistance. So that's number one. And if you happen to tell me… Yes?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:17:40):

Yes. And since we have Senator Thune still here, the quicker we can get our undersecretary approved in that lane, the quicker we will be able to move. Obviously, my confirmation as well if approved and I'll be honored. But we have already begun putting the team together that did this work under the President Trump first administration. Hopefully, my

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:18:00):

… thought was that we won't have to reinvent the wheel. We can immediately begin moving. So that is my commitment. And again, I'll work all hours to ensure that that happens.

Sen. Moran (03:18:08):

Thank you for that answer. I also want to again highlight a few words that I mentioned in our conversation in the office, the National Bio and Agro Defense Facility.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:18:17):

Yes, sir.

Sen. Moran (03:18:18):

In Manhattan, Kansas, near Kansas State University is this national center created as a result of the fear of an introduction of some entity, something into our food supply system that would be a terrorist act, and do we have the capability scientifically to respond? That facility is a $1.5 billion facility. It employs 400 people, and it has greater potential than what has been developed between the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Agriculture.

(03:18:52)
It has been transferred to USDA. It's your responsibility. I would like if you could give me a point person now or a few days from now in which could become my point person on the National Bio Agro Science Facility.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:19:05):

Yes, sir. I can't do it right at this moment, but I will absolutely get that to you as soon as I have the ability to do that. I don't know if I have to wait to be confirmed. If I don't, you will get that right away. If I do, hopefully that will come upon confirmation very soon.

Sen. Moran (03:19:19):

It seems to me that we should be working for your fast confirmation and [inaudible 03:19:23]-

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:19:22):

That seems like a really good idea.

Sen. Moran (03:19:24):

… talked about. Let me highlight NIFA and ERS. So the Trump administration, in the past, decided that they wanted to help put departments, agencies, federal employees across the country, not totally centered here in Washington, DC, the nation's capital, and NIFA and ERS agencies were moved to Kansas City.

(03:19:50)
I think what happened is in the circumstances here in Washington, DC, there were 650 or 700 employees. I'm told that there are 400 employees now in Kansas City. At least by press reports, only 20% of the people are actually working in the office. So if we want to have the kind of consequence in reviving rural America, other places in the country, this is certainly a Kansas issue, but it's a Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, where sometimes our farm kids can't get a job back on the farm, can't return to the family farm, but they want to work in agriculture.

(03:20:27)
Or it's a spouse of somebody who's on the farm, and having those agencies and their employees in places like Kansas and Missouri and Iowa and Nebraska creates opportunities that would not otherwise exist. So, in my view, the purpose of the move was defeated in the reality of telling people, "Well, you stay in DC and work from home." That fits in with a conversation a number of us had about actually getting USDA and other federal employees back in the office.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:20:57):

I 100% agree with you. I am extremely excited to get our workforce back into the office, whether it's here in Washington or out across the country. I think that in the business that we are in at USDA, a customer business and being available for our customers, whether that is up in Senator Welch's Vermont or my Texas or wherever it is, your Kansas, that we have people in the office. So that will be a very big priority of mine.

Sen. Moran (03:21:26):

Thank you. I'm involved in SAF, renewable aviation fuel. We have introduced legislation, Farm to Fly. It has been made a part of the draft of both the House and Senate farm bills. I would just ask your awareness that there is an opportunity for agriculture across the country as we began to fuel the aviation industry.

(03:21:50)
Kansas, the air capital of the world along with an agricultural center, has a great potential, but this is a potential for all farmers as we talk about how to make sure if we've lost a market due to a tariff or as they struggle, we need every market we can get. It also requires a good definition from 45Z in the Treasury Department, which you've said you will advocate for.

(03:22:10)
Finally, we have an ARS Center, a research center in Manhattan, Kansas. Kansas State University has a tremendous amount of agricultural research, and we would like to see cooperation between the two, including potentially the co-location of their work. The facilities for ARS are nothing that they should be. There's a lot of work that needs to be done. There's a number of us, including the chairman of the committee who are members of the Appropriations Committee for the Department of Agriculture, and we want to help you get better facilities.

(03:22:49)
I would just like to highlight the need for cooperation. If we're going to build a better or expand a facility, can we do it in conjunction with the local university and get the bigger bang for the buck?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:23:00):

I encourage that discussion. Obviously, as a proud agriculture degree from Texas A&M and I'm still very close with the leadership there, in fact, our vice chancellor was hoping to be here today but ended up having to give a speech to some livestock producers. My heart is with a lot of these universities with all of our land grants across the country.

Sen. Moran (03:23:19):

That was a very fine answer. I like the response, except there was something you should have said about the importance of other land-grant universities, for example, Kansas State.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:23:26):

For example, Kansas State, Senator. Yes.

Sen. Moran (03:23:29):

Thank you.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:23:30):

I appreciate that. And I'm excited to continue that work with you.

Sen. Moran (03:23:32):

And let me tell Mrs. Kerwin, thank you for raising a great daughter.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:23:36):

Oh, thank you, sir.

Senator Boozman (03:23:43):

Senator Schiff, five minutes. We're going to do five-minute rounds now.

Adam Schiff (03:23:47):

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Ms. Rollins, right now farm workers in Ventura County are picking strawberries in a brown haze, smoke from the fires. It's a surreal scene to look at images of working in those conditions. These are just some of the difficult conditions that farm workers are often in. They're working in 100-degree heat. They're working in the cold. They're some of the hardest working people I've ever met.

(03:24:21)
I want to raise the issue of the impact that mass deportations would have on them, first and foremost, on people who are working so hard to put food on our table and just the, to me, grave injustice of deporting people who are doing such vital work to feed us. There's also the impact on their families. Many of them have children who are US citizens and will be US citizens, and so it would have the effect of splitting up their families.

(03:24:58)
Even if we set that aside, which we shouldn't, it's estimated that perhaps half of California's farm workforce is undocumented. So my question is how are you supposed to farm? How are farmers in California supposed to survive if there are truly mass deportations in which half of the workforce is sent out of the country? Americans don't want to do that work. It's frankly just too backbreaking. So who's going to work the farms?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:25:33):

Senator, I know we talked about this in your office and had a productive, perhaps agree-to-disagree but still productive conversation, and I so appreciate that. We've talked about this within this committee in the last three or four hours as well. President Trump ran and was overwhelmingly elected on the priority of border security and mass deportation. He and his team are, I'm assuming, currently putting in place the plans to begin that process, of course, first with those who have committed criminal offenses once they have been here.

(03:26:11)
The American people have asked for a secure border and a system where they do not have to be concerned with the millions and millions that crossed here illegally and brought a lot of strife and unsafe communities to America. I know this is not the committee where we discuss this.

Adam Schiff (03:26:33):

Well, Ms. Rollins --

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:26:34):

I know probably the last thing you want to do is get into a debate right now over it because I sure don't want to, but let me answer your question. I will work around the clock with our new labor secretary if she's confirmed, Lori Chavez-DeRemer. There is obviously, I think everyone would agree, H-2A, important changes that need to be made to recognize within the agriculture community the importance of a strong labor force.

Adam Schiff (03:26:59):

Well, I still want to get back to my question though. If they're gone, who's going to do that work?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:27:06):

Well, sir, we don't know, first of all, whether who they are. I mean we all throw numbers around like 40%, 50%, 60%. The answer is we just don't know. As these processes and programs are being implemented under this new administration with the full support of the majority of Americans, I think that we, as the leaders in agriculture, myself as the leader at USDA, you on this committee along with others on the committee, that we will work together to understand and hopefully solve for some of these problems that the dairy cattle have to be milked.

(03:27:42)
But if we've got a mass deportation program underway, then there's a lot of work that we need to do through the labor department with Lori Chavez-DeRemer, who's also an ag person, and working with Congress to solve for a lot of this through our current labor programs that are already on the books.

Adam Schiff (03:27:59):

Well, let me ask one other related question on this topic, and that is if we deport a large percentage of our farm workforce, farm labor is going to be scarce. Isn't that inevitably going to push up food prices? And if so, isn't that in sharp contrast with what the president said he wanted to do to bring down egg prices and food prices and everything else?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:28:25):

Well, first of all, we're speaking in hypotheticals, but certainly these are hypotheticals we do need to be thinking through, and I think it's a very fair point. The president has made food inflation and the cost of food one of his top priorities. I have worked alongside him.

(03:28:40)
I have been part of his team for many years now. I believe in his vision and his commitment to America and to his promises. And in so doing, I believe that we will be able to find in our toolkit what we need to do to solve for any hypothetical issues that end up turning out to be real, moving forward over the coming months and years.

Adam Schiff (03:29:00):

Well, thank you. Mr. Chairman, I would just say that I hope they're hypothetical.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:29:05):

I do, too.

Adam Schiff (03:29:06):

I fear they may be all too real.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:29:08):

Thank you, sir.

Adam Schiff (03:29:09):

Mr. Chairman, I yield back.

Senator Boozman (03:29:12):

Thank you. Senator Klobuchar is supposedly on the way, so I'm going to ask one question.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:29:20):

Yes sir.

Senator Boozman (03:29:22):

You're welcome to answer it and then any thoughts that you have as you close. And if she's here then, we're in great shape. If not, then we're out of here.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:29:34):

I'm available all the time.

Senator Boozman (03:29:35):

You're doing a wonderful job.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:29:36):

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Senator Boozman (03:29:37):

Thank you for … This hearing has been really good. We've had great participation, and because of that, it just takes a while.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:29:45):

Yeah. No, I'm honored.

Senator Boozman (03:29:47):

As you've heard, there's lots of questions, lots of concerns, lots of concerns in farm country, and not only that, but people forget how broad the portfolio that you're taking on. We could be talking about crypto. We could be talking about a lot of stuff.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:30:06):

It's true.

Senator Boozman (03:30:08):

But we're not. But let me just ask you one thing that I don't think has come up is the fact that America's producers depend on USDA's voluntary, locally-led conservation programs and conservation technical assistance to implement the most effective conservation practices that meet their operations' unique resource concerns.

(03:30:34)
Unfortunately, in recent years, the focus has identified a lot of other things that may be a top-down approach of prioritizing carbon sequestration, related activities over water quality, erosion control, and drought mitigation. Those things are important. And yet again, what I want you to talk about is the fact that you would be committed to a voluntary, locally-led, incentive-based conservation model that's served our farmers and ranchers for so many years very effectively.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:31:13):

I would, Senator. I know we all know that the best conservationists are our farmers and ranchers, certainly from the beginning of our country. One thing I don't think I've talked about with anyone on the committee is that my family, on our farm in Minnesota, a piece of the land actually participated in one of those voluntary conservation programs, so we actually have firsthand knowledge of what that looked like and how to do it and believe certainly in how important and valuable it can be.

(03:31:39)
So yes, sir, I look forward to, other than my personal experience that my sister, Ann, really led it so I can't pretend to know much. But I was very, very grateful for her and our family, that I don't know as much about it as I need to and I look forward to learning more. But yes, you have my commitment that clearly that's an important piece of all of the work.

Senator Boozman (03:32:01):

Have you got any closing comments or? I'm sorry.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:32:07):

I do have closing comments, but I'm guessing that Senator Warnock might have another question or two.

Senator Boozman (03:32:12):

Very much. Senator Warnock.

Senator Warnock (03:32:14):

Thank you so very much, Chair Boozman. Just a couple more questions, and thank you so very much for your presentation this morning. Farmers in Georgia already talking to me. They're already concerned about potential retaliatory actions following President Trump's promises to levy heavy tariffs. They're already dealing with slim margins. As I said in my first round of questions, it's a tough business, so much you don't control, and it's not difficult to find yourselves in trouble.

(03:32:49)
They're dealing with slim margins due to high input costs and last thing they need is to be caught up in the middle of a trade war that could drive up food prices for all of us. If confirmed, what will you do from your position at USDA to ensure that Georgia's farmers and families aren't caught up in a trade war? Again, it's something I've worked on, by the way, with Republicans and with helping to get our farmers goods to market. So it's something we think about a lot.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:33:18):

Senator Warnock, when I was in your office, I believe last month, we talked about your commitment to your farmers and what a priority this was to you. Georgia is a very important agriculture state. You're obviously pastoring a church and in the United States Senate, but I was impressed at your commitment to your ag community in your state and look forward to continuing to work with you.

(03:33:39)
It's very clear that the coming tariffs and I think there's no doubt that President Trump has been very transparent that he believes this is an extremely important tool in his toolkit to put America first, to revive the economy, to get us back to a place where he believes we need to be, and I agree with him and hope to help him execute that vision. But it also shouldn't be surprising that his heart and his commitment to our farmers and our agriculture community was certainly clear in the last administration.

(03:34:15)
The number one answer, from my perspective, is working around the clock to expand market access and working on new trade deals and getting new partners from around the world. I have an undersecretary already named, hopefully get him committed … confirmed. Maybe committed and confirmed, Chairman Boozman. But get him confirmed very, very quickly so we can begin to build those teams.

(03:34:35)
The president is a consummate deal-maker, and I feel very confident we'll be able to expand those markets, begin to peel back the trade deficit, and get back to trade surpluses, which I know we're used to, but immediately moving into the distribution of disaster relief, economic relief, the new farm bill that's coming out. I've already announced the undersecretary and put the team in place to be able to deploy that.

Senator Warnock (03:34:58):

Let me press on just so I have all of the time. I agree with you that access to foreign markets is critical, and in Georgia we've got a lot of that are relying on strong export markets, timber, poultry, pecans. Are you concerned that isolationist trade practices may harm our farmers' ability to access these foreign markets?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:35:23):

I have full confidence in President Trump's ability to lead us on this, and hopefully, he and many of you have confidence in my ability to help from the ag perspective.

Senator Warnock (03:35:33):

All right, I look forward to continuing to engage you on this if you're confirmed.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:35:38):

Absolutely. Thank you.

Senator Warnock (03:35:39):

USDA has a long documented and unfortunate history of racial discrimination, even recent history. I was proud to have secured funding in the Inflation Reduction Act to provide financial assistance to farmers who had previously experienced discrimination in the hands of their USDA farm lending programs. This was a meaningful step in rebuilding trust. However, USDA still has a lot of work to do, and this will only be more difficult following the new administration's executive order aimed at rolling back all of this progress.

(03:36:14)
I was proud Congress passed my legislation in 2021 to require USDA to create an Equity Commission, and the commission's final report provides an excellent roadmap for continuing this work. Chair Boozman, without objection, I would like to enter the USDA's 2024 Equity Report into the record. Thank you so much.

(03:36:35)
When we met last month, you promised to read the equity report. Have you gotten a chance to read it yet?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:36:41):

90 pages and 66 recommendations. Yes, sir. Now that has been about a little over a month ago, so please don't ask me to quote page 66, but yes.

Senator Warnock (03:36:48):

I'm glad you got a chance to read it. I understand it's been removed from the website or there's not access to it. I'm glad you got a chance to read it. Will you seriously consider the recommendations of the Equity Commission's report if you're confirmed?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:37:02):

Senator, let me answer this way. I was really appreciative of the conversation. For me, more knowledge is always best. Understanding where everyone comes from, whether I agree or disagree, recognizing what's in the past is important, but also realizing the path ahead and how we forge the path.

Senator Warnock (03:37:20):

Will you consider the recommendations?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:37:22):

Sir, I will consider anything that's on the table. I think that's only fair, but I also … President Trump won on the concept of removing the diversity, equity, and inclusion, making sure that we are basing our decisions on merit, and I obviously support that 100% as well. But I look forward, Senator, to continuing to talk about this.

(03:37:43)
My friend, Alveda, has long talked to me about the plight of Black farmers in Georgia and other places around the country, and I'm always open to discussions, always. May I say there is no room for racism at the United States Department of Agriculture or any agency.

Senator Warnock (03:37:59):

In that regard, will you commit to recruiting more diverse employees who understand these communities, have relationships with these communities, so that we build trust between these communities and the lending offices?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:38:11):

Sir, my commitment is to recruit the best workforce in the history of the United States Department of Agriculture, period, full stop. I believe that will include many members of all different corners of our country.

Senator Warnock (03:38:25):

Do you think a diverse workforce and a high-quality workforce are somehow oppositional objectives?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:38:33):

I think always hiring based on who is the best person for the job, who is going to do the most excellent service, who is best equipped to execute on all of the promises is the promise of America. But I also believe, to your point, and have long held, that ensuring that we give all people a chance to succeed and to thrive and for equal opportunity is a bedrock foundational principle of America.

Senator Warnock (03:38:58):

On that, you and I agree. Thank you so very much.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:39:00):

Thank you, Senator.

Senator Warnock (03:39:02):

Senator Klobuchar.

Senator Klobuchar (03:39:05):

Thank you very much, Senator Boozman, and I'm hoping these will be your last three questions. Your family looks like they might want to break for lunch, but they've been very good back there. I just want you to know that.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:39:15):

How have the teenagers been?

Senator Klobuchar (03:39:16):

Yeah, good. Just excellent.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:39:17):

I haven't been able to look at them, so they haven't gotten any looks from me, so hopefully, they're good.

Senator Klobuchar (03:39:25):

According to recent reports, House Republicans are already eyeing nearly 300 billion in cuts to the SNAP program, roughly 30% cut. Now, that's just reports. I think you've heard from some of my colleagues about how this is such an issue in rural America. In my state, as Senator Smith pointed out, our actual hunger rate is higher in rural than it is in the metropolitan areas.

(03:39:53)
What kind of an impact do you think a $300 billion cut would have to SNAP? And if confirmed, will you commit to supporting robust funding for USDA's nutrition program?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:40:05):

Senator, thank you. My commitment will always be to ensuring that these programs are effective and efficient. I think I spoke from the heart, and I mean this sincerely, the importance of our leadership as a bipartisan body to ensure that those with the least among us are ably supported and don't go hungry. This is the United States of America.

(03:40:28)
I don't yet know what the numbers look like. I need to really dig down. But my commitment to you is that we will talk about this until the very last minute. I will always be open to you and that I look forward to ensuring that we're able to do what the original and core tenets of that program are called to do.

Senator Klobuchar (03:40:43):

I'll follow up on this in a written question, but I do want to know if you believe SNAP benefits should be calculated based on current food costs?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:40:53):

Well, I will say that obviously current food costs, the importance of the inputs into the program and understanding where the market is will always be a priority.

Senator Klobuchar (03:41:03):

Okay. Congress made significant investments in climate-smart agriculture through the Inflation Reduction Act, giving more farmers access to popular conservation programs. So we had a situation where a bunch of the farm groups actually were supportive of this part of the IRA. I've always led bipartisan legislation on conservation, working with our hunting and fishing groups. One of the bills I have has been with Senator Thune based on voluntary conservation program participation.

(03:41:38)
A recent executive order issued just, of course, in the last two days to pause disbursements from the Inflation Reduction Act would put some of these plans that I mentioned, CRP plans and the like, in jeopardy. What is your understanding of the impact of these executive orders, and will these orders to slow IRA disbursements impact farmers looking to use voluntary conservation programs?

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:42:06):

My commitment is to obviously understand exactly what the target and the goal of that executive order is. I have not been read in on that yet, but I will be, and then ensuring that that aligns with what is stated in that executive order. Again, President Trump and our administration's heart is with the rural communities and the agriculture communities and ensuring that there's full understanding and data to support what this will do.

(03:42:35)
Of course, not surprisingly, Senator Klobuchar, I think the president has been very clear on his priorities on climate programs and whether taxpayer dollars should be supporting those. The robust conversation I think that we will have is to follow, and I look forward to that. You have my commitment that I'm always available to discuss that and to represent ag interests where appropriate in those discussions with the White House.

Senator Klobuchar (03:42:56):

Okay. Thank you, and also just wanted to thank you for your commitment to the next generation of farmers and ranchers. As you know, the average age is, well, not quite as old as the US Senate, but it has been creeping up and we need new people to go into agriculture. I hope just with your background, on your FAA involvement, and the like, I think that'd be among your many priorities would be a really smart thing to go around and talk about. I know there's plenty of people on our side of the aisle that would join you in that focus. So thank you.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:43:36):

Thank you, Senator.

Senator Boozman (03:43:41):

I want to thank Mrs. Rollins for appearing before the committee today, and also I'd like to thank Ranking Member Klobuchar and all the members of the committee for the great participation that we had today. The Ranking Member and I have agreed that questions for the record are due by 6:00 p.m. tomorrow. This concludes today's hearing.

Mrs. Brooke Rollins (03:44:04):

Thank you so much. Thank you. What an honor to be here. Thank you.

Senator Klobuchar (03:44:05):

Thank you.