On the recordFebruary 10, 2020
The U.S. agriculture sector is crucial to our economy and generates more than $1 trillion in annual economic activity. In 2017, Texas farms sold $24.9 billion in agricultural products, a significant contribution to the State's economy. However, with increasing levels of trade, threats to the United States' agricultural sector are growing. Foreign pests and diseases cost our economy tens of billions of dollars per year. Agricultural specialists at our ports of entry intercept thousands of invasive pests and prevent the introduction of foreign animal diseases, such as the African swine fever, into the United States, protecting our natural resources and our economy. Unfortunately, a shortage of agricultural specialists exists at our U.S. ports of entry, which is why this legislation is so important. This bill would ensure that we have enough agricultural specialists, technicians, and K-9 teams to adequately perform agricultural quarantine inspections at our international ports of entry. I ask my colleagues to support swift passage of the Protecting America's Food and Agriculture Act of 2019. I thank my colleague, Senator Peters, for his collaboration on this crucial bill and our Texas colleagues in the Senate, Senators Cornyn and Cruz, and Representative Crenshaw for their leadership in this effort.
