The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“ARKANSAS CENTURY FARMING FAMILIES” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Agriculture was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H6247-H6248 on Nov. 16, 2016.
The Department is primarily focused on food nutrition, with assistance programs making up 80 percent of its budget. Downsizing the Federal Government, a project aimed at lowering taxes and boosting federal efficiency, said the Department implements too many regulations and restrictions and impedes the economy.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
ARKANSAS CENTURY FARMING FAMILIES
(Mr. WESTERMAN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, in 2012, the Arkansas Department of Agriculture began the Arkansas Century Farm Program. This program honors those Arkansas farm families who have owned and farmed the same land for at least 100 years. Since 2012, 297 Arkansas farms and families have been inducted in the Arkansas Century Farm Program, and on Tuesday, November 1, 2016, an additional 44 families were recognized by the program, including 14 families representing 10 counties in Arkansas's Fourth Congressional District.
Mr. Speaker, there is something special to be said for those families that continue to dedicate their time and treasure to the land that has provided for their families over many generations. They wisely manage our natural resources, tend to livestock entrusted to their care, drive our economy forward, and pass down a special way of life to future generations. Our farm families know and understand that, if they take care of the land, it will, in turn, take care of them.
I know that the families that have been recognized by the Arkansas Century Farm Program understand this concept the best. I congratulate these families on their induction into this prestigious program and wish them another productive century.
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