AGRICULTURE, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, AND RELATED AGENCY APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2027

On 2026-06-04, Representative Tom Cole (R-OK-4) delivered a floor speech titled "AGRICULTURE, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, AND RELATED AGENCY APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2027" in the House.

AGRICULTURE, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, AND RELATED AGENCY APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2027

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 95 (Thursday, June 4, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 95 (Thursday, June 4, 2026)] [House] [Pages H3840-H3864] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] AGRICULTURE, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, AND RELATED AGENCY APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2027 General Leave Mr. HARRIS of Maryland. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 8646, and that I may include tabular material on the same. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Maryland? There was no objection. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 1333 and rule XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill, H.R. 8646. The Chair appoints the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Evans) to preside over the Committee of the Whole. {time} 1215 In the Committee of the Whole Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill (H.R. 8646) making appropriations for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies programs for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2027, and for other purposes, with Mr. Evans of Colorado in the chair. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The CHAIR. Pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered read the first time. General debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed 1 hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Appropriations, or their respective designees. The gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Harris) and the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Bishop) each will control 30 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Harris). Mr. HARRIS of Maryland. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chair, I rise today to bring before the House H.R. 8646, the fiscal year 2027 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agency Appropriations bill. I thank Appropriations Committee Chairman Cole for his leadership and quickly moving the fiscal year 2027 appropriations process forward. I also recognize the ranking member of the full committee, Ms. DeLauro, and the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee ranking member, Mr. Bishop, for their work in getting us to this point. I appreciate the conversations Mr. Bishop and I have had, and while we may not agree on everything in the bill, I know that we are much closer to agreement than some of today's debate and rhetoric may show. For fiscal year 2027, the subcommittee's discretionary allocation is $26.27 billion, a $380 million, or 1.4 percent, decrease from fiscal year 2026 enacted levels. In a setting of $2 trillion deficits, these modest spending reductions are necessary. This legislation reflects a clear, necessary commitment to fiscal responsibility, while ensuring that America's farmers, ranchers, and rural communities remain a top priority and that all Americans have access to a safe food and drug supply. This legislation builds on the successful efforts of the Trump administration to root out fraud, waste, and [[Page H3841]] abuse, shrink the Federal bureaucracy, and make USDA programs more farmer friendly. It sets USDA on a responsible and sustainable spending path that will make both the Department and our Nation stronger. Under President Trump's and Secretary Rollins' leadership, every taxpayer dollar will be spent in the pursuit of putting all American farmers and ranchers first. I would like to highlight a few areas where the legislation supports the administration's efforts to refocus the Department on its core mission by prioritizing essential functions in a fiscally responsible manner. The bill provides $1.16 billion for the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, or APHIS, to support the Department's efforts to protect our producers from highly pathogenic avian influenza, New World screwworm, and other foreign plant and animal diseases. The legislation continues to invest in the delivery of farm programs, disaster assistance, and crop insurance to farmers by prioritizing funding for farmer-facing functions. Following the budget request, the bill moves $50 million of Farm Service Agency IT funds from FSA to the Office of the Chief Information Officer to continue to invest in and implement USDA's One Farmer, One File Initiative. After accounting for this transfer of funds, no matter what you will hear from the nay-sayers, the bill actually increases overall funding for FSA staff, including for county office staff. The bill provides important investments in critical agricultural research that will keep our producers on the cutting edge of technology and production practices. We maintain funding for USDA's flagship competitive grant program, the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative, and protect capacity funding for our land grant universities to ensure our farmers and ag workforce remain competitive with China. This legislation continues to fund vital rural development programs, including critical infrastructure investments in water and wastewater systems and housing programs, as well as increasing the loan authority for the business and industry and rural electric programs due to increased demand. {time} 1220 For the Food and Drug Administration, the bill provides $3.36 billion in direct appropriations. With increased user fees, FDA has a total budget of $7.1 billion to enable the agency to keep food, drugs, and medical devices safe and effective, as well as advance the Make America Healthy Again initiatives highlighted in the President's budget. Finally, let me discuss WIC. The bill provides full funding of $8 billion for WIC, which is about 3 percent lower than last year's enacted level, but USDA data clearly shows that WIC participation has been declining and is not projected to be as high as originally estimated for fiscal year 2027. USDA also expects to have sufficient carryover funds to meet all the program needs, if necessary. With lower participation estimates and increased carryover funding, the $8 billion allocated will fully fund the program. Let me say it one more time. Despite what the naysayers will claim, WIC is fully funded for its needs. No women or their children will lose or be denied coverage. I believe a credible evaluation of this legislation will conclude that it balances the funding needs of the USDA, FDA, and CFTC while being responsible stewards of our constituents' hard-earned tax dollars. As Mr. Bishop has said, this is a good faith effort to meet the moment, and there are critical things that warrant support. I am pleased that the bill received bipartisan support out of committee, and we want to keep working with the minority as we move forward in this process. In closing, I ask for Members' support of this legislation. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. BISHOP. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to H.R. 8646. As ranking member of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, I am deeply disappointed by this bill because it fails every American who relies on us for safe food and medicines, resilient farmlands, and vital rural infrastructure. The FY 2027 House Agriculture appropriations bill is 4 percent below the FY26 enacted levels, a cut of $1.1 billion. It makes substantial reductions across rural development, farm production and conservation, nutrition, and foreign aid programs. Most notably, House Republicans are proposing to drastically reduce fruit and vegetable benefits for 5 million low-income women, infants, and children in the WIC program. With funding for WIC below 2026 and rising food costs, the National WIC Association says it is quite possible that State agencies will have to turn away eligible families for the first time in 30 years. To my Republican colleagues and the American people, I ask, does this make sense? Do we not want fresh and healthy food for women, infants, and schoolchildren? Do we want to keep turning this country back instead of moving it forward? While there is an unauthorized war in Iran, a single week's spending for the war could fully fund WIC for almost an entire year. What is worse, the Department of Defense admits that 25 percent of our servicemembers and military families do not have access to sufficient quality food to meet their basic needs. The majority is willing to spend billions of dollars overseas but not willing to feed the American troops fighting the war? This bill not only hurts those struggling to afford to put food on the table, but it also hurts our farmers. There were 46 percent more farm bankruptcies in 2025 than the year before, and the issue is getting worse. USDA's own economists expect farm income to decline by $4.1 billion from 2025 to 2026. Just as our producers are getting hit with increased fuel and input costs from this unauthorized war and chaotic tariffs, this administration has gutted the experienced Federal workforce and shuttered offices when our producers and rural communities need them the most. My colleagues and I across this country have gotten calls from farmers and ranchers who tell us that they are showing up to closed or understaffed Farm Service Agency, Rural Development, and Natural Resources Conservation Service offices. The staff they have worked with for years are disappearing, and the cuts to staffing in this bill at those very agencies will only make it harder for them to get the support that they need. House Republicans also cut funding for water and wastewater grants for poor rural commun

Referenced legislation: HRES1333, HR8646