Claudia Tenney: “Our dairy farmers are facing a crisis. Family farms have shaped our upstate communities, built our local economies, and…”

“Our dairy farmers are facing a crisis. Family farms have shaped our upstate communities, built our local economies, and put food on our tables, but the great tradition of family farming is in jeopardy. Our farmers need help. Unfair trade agreements; rising regulatory costs; high taxes, especially in New York, which has some of the highest property, sales, and income taxes in the Nation; and distortions in the labor market have pushed our farmers to the brink of bankruptcy. Sadly, many have chosen to close in New York altogether, the third largest dairy-producing State in the Nation. I am grateful that the Trump administration is hearing our desperate call. In a recent visit to Trinity Valley Farm and Brabant Farm in New York's 22nd District, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue heard our farmers' pleas for help. He visited our district, the first time a sitting Secretary of Agriculture has visited our district in over 20 years. He provided insight and took our concerns back to Washington. It is time to turn the tide and end this crisis. Preserving the great tradition of farming is vital to preserving our heritage, our families, and our economy. ____________________”