Frank Lucas

A big reason our producers succeed in an industry that relies on uncontrollable forces...

Unfortunately, this is not always the case.

As a farmer, as I said I have always considered myself an eternal optimist.

I am one of those around this place who knows my way through the FSA office.

When we lose that source of production, we don't usually get it back.

That's why I'm so grateful to the men and women who choose farming as a career.

Each of those audits was important in their own right, but I believe today's audit of Title I programs and disaster assistance is particularly significant.

Understanding the true cost and benefits of our Title I programs will help us develop a better farm bill moving forward.

That is why I am so grateful to the men and women who choose farming as a career.

I can tell you in these temperatures every chore is that much harder.

I believe that we would be holding these audits regardless of the time period in which we will be writing the next farm bill.

The conservation programs are the most popular. They do the most good. They are the legacy programs.

Today's audit will help us evaluate our current policy so that we can determine what is working, what needs to be adjusted, and what can be eliminated.

In 2002, we increased conservation spending in the 2002 Farm Bill by $17 billion over 10 years--an 80 percent expansion that created the greenest farm bill in history.

As lawmakers, we have a responsibility to ensure that conservation policy is effective without being duplicative or too costly.

Farmers and ranchers make their living off the land and they are committed to preserving and protecting it for future generations.

We are starting with comprehensive audits so that we can examine each program within the broader context of farm policy.

The second purpose of these audits is educational in nature.

I believe that we can meet this challenge and develop thoughtful policies to keep American agriculture productive and competitive in the 21st century.

We will make these determinations with the help of these audits, along with the input from our constituents.

There are no sacred cows, so to speak, and during these tough fiscal times, every program, every title will be on the table.

The simple truth is, we must make some difficult decisions.

I hope that today we can start a dialogue on how to root out inefficiencies.

These audits ensure that we are operating from the same base of knowledge.

We will scrutinize waste, fraud, and abuse, and look for ways to build on the success the Department has already achieved.