Austin Scott

Let me be clear, neither I nor anyone else on this Committee condones violations in regard to the Fair Labor Standards Act in any way.

To be clear, the Labor Department has authority to compel specialty crop producers and packers to reimburse workers when wages fall short of the minimum wage requirement WITHOUT using the hot goods provision.

We believe it is important to provide fair wages for agricultural workers yet this law was not intended for use with regards to fresh fruits and vegetables which perish more easily than a manufactured good.

The issue we will discuss today is the Department of Labor's abuse of this discretion when applying the hot goods provision to perishable agricultural commodities.

If we just do the math, simple math that comes out to 125 years.

I would not be surprised if Ranking Member Schrader and I have already been vilified in social media for even having the audacity to talk about the benefits of biotechnology to our agricultural sector.

The purpose of today's hearing of the Subcommittee on Horticulture, Research, Biotechnology, and Foreign Agriculture is to consider the many benefits we as a society have realized through technological achievements.

My biggest worry is that under the guise of trying to inform the consumer, we actually misinform the consumer.

I find it somewhat ironic that those very people that seem to be most concerned about climate change seem to be against one of the major tools we can use to actually combat some of the deleterious effects of current farming practices.

I don't see that issue here with the USDA, and I just wonder what your opinion is of the collaboration between the USDA, your industry, and do you really think in Congress there is a role for us to play in this very complicated issue?

Today's hearing of the Subcommittee on Horticulture, Research, Biotechnology, and Foreign Agriculture will review the current health of our nation's bee pollinators.

And when I talk with the men and women back home, it just kind of makes the problem worse, in how much of the cut they are being asked to take.

Reducing those delays just helps the rural community so much, and agriculture is the foundation of our economy.

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for being here. And sit here and I know Americans are scratching their heads that we are trying to balance between promises we made to veterans and equipping and training our men and women in uniform.

I am very respectful of other people's right to practice their faith.

It seems that in the military people of my faith can get reprimanded for a statement as simple as one saying that my priorities in life are a commitment to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And Congressman Heck asked a lot of my questions.

I was glad to hear you speak of our friend Taiwan, and making sure that they know that we are going to continue to be their friend.

Quite honestly, they should be paying the cost, not the United States taxpayer and the U.S. soldier.

the cost of energy is reflected in everything we purchase in this country.

when we have two regulatory agencies essentially regulating the same field, that when they can't agree on what the definition of the word person is, then we are creating a situation where you may be in compliance with one regulatory agency…

the more we raise the cost to the end-user, and in my situation, I am talking about farmers in particular, you increase the cost to the grain farmer, the price, the cost is born by the person every time they buy a box of cereal.

I would hope that direct and significant is another term that you are able to get a uniform agreement with the SEC on.

I do hope that you will continue to get the uniform definitions with the SEC and our overseas regulators as well.

If we can't even get to the agreement on what the definition of a U.S. person is, then how do we get to the definition of what a direct and significant impact on U.S. consumers is?