Thomas Daschle: “I want to thank Chairman Lugar, Senator Harkin, and their staffs for the tremendous effort they have devoted to the…”

“I want to thank Chairman Lugar, Senator Harkin, and their staffs for the tremendous effort they have devoted to the research reauthorization bill over the past several months, and congratulate them for the legislation we have before us today. We owe much of the credit for this country's agricultural success to our network of land grant institutions, State agriculture experiment stations, USDA's Agricultural Research Service, and hundreds of county extension offices. These entities work together in a wide range of ways to produce cutting-edge research and then convert it into improved practices and technology meaningful to producers. It is important to strengthen this network further. This bill places increased emphasis on collaboration among institutions and disciplines, and encourages pursuit of goals benefiting more than one region or State. It emphasizes priority-setting so resources can be targeted to emerging and critical issues when necessary, and establishes new mechanisms for ensuring accountability. Specifically, I am pleased that the bill preserves existing programs that share these objectives, such as the Fund for Rural America.”