**[Statement of Dr. Gale Buchanan]{.smallcaps}**

**[Under Secretary for Research, Education & Economics]{.smallcaps}**

**[United States Department of Agriculture]{.smallcaps}**

**[Before the]{.smallcaps}**

**[U.S. House Committee on Agriculture]{.smallcaps}**

**[Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Energy &
Research]{.smallcaps}**

**[Washington, DC]{.smallcaps}**

**[May 10, 2007]{.smallcaps}**

Chairman Holden, Ranking Member Lucas, and distinguished members of the
Committee, it is a great pleasure to be here this morning to discuss the
United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) research, extension and
education programs and the Administration's 2007 Farm Bill proposals. I
appreciate the committee's interest in these programs that are so
critical to our nation's future.

The success of American agriculture is attributable, in large part, to
advances in science and technology generated by the USDA's research,
extension, and education agencies, in partnership with the nation's
land-grant universities and other cooperators. Science has served as a
vitally important foundation for our agricultural system and its ability
to provide this nation and the world with its needs for food, fiber and
feed of our livestock.

While there has been excellent success in the past we must look to not
only immediate scientific needs, but build an even stronger foundation
to maintain our world leadership in agriculture. This is imperative if
this nation's agricultural system is to continue as a world leader and
not be severely stifled by the ever increasing disease threats, changing
world market competition, drought and other natural impacts. For
example, there is an immediate and long term need for scientific answers
on how our agricultural system can play an important role in meeting our
nation's need for greater energy security. The Administration's Title
VII 2007 Farm Bill proposals provide organizational changes and specific
funding to help meet the immediate and long term scientific needs of
American agriculture.

As Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics, I am
responsible for four agencies charged with advancing science in
agriculture, the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), the Cooperative
State Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES), the Economic
Research Service (ERS) and the National Agricultural Statistics Service
(NASS).

ARS is USDA's principal in-house research agency with over 2000
scientists at over 100 locations around the nation and in four foreign
countries. The mission of ARS is to conduct research to develop and
transfer solutions to agricultural problems of high national priority
and provide information access and dissemination to: ensure
high-quality, safe food, and other agricultural products; assess the
nutritional needs of Americans; sustain a competitive agricultural
economy; enhance the natural resource base and the environment; and
provide economic opportunities for rural citizens, communities, and
society as a whole.

CSREES\' unique mission is to advance knowledge for agriculture, the
environment, human health and well-being, and communities by supporting
research, education, and extension programs in the land-grant university
system and other partner organizations. CSREES does not perform actual
research, education, and extension functions but rather helps fund such
programs at the state and local level and provides programmatic
leadership in these areas.

ERS is a primary source of economic information and research in the U.S.
Department of Agriculture. With 450 employees, ERS conducts research and
economic analysis programs to inform public and private decision-making
on economic and policy issues involving food, farming, natural
resources, and rural development.

NASS is the Department's primary statistical agency and provides
official USDA crop and livestock production, economic, and environmental
data on agriculture and rural America. NASS conducts hundreds of surveys
every year and prepares reports covering virtually every aspect of U.S.
agriculture including: production and supplies of food and fiber, prices
paid and received by farmers, farm labor and wages, farm finances,
chemical use, and changes in the demographics of U.S. producers. NASS is
also responsible for the Census of Agriculture.

USDA is continually striving to further enhance its science-based
programs for the betterment of American agriculture. The
Administration's Farm Bill proposals fully recognize this fact and
places a high priority on strengthening our system.

As the "People's Department" we seek and consider input from our
stakeholders, outside experts, and governing bodies, among others, to
ensure that we work effectively to meet the needs of people across the
nation and around the world. Input received---that points to the need
for reorganization---includes, but is not limited to, input received
through Congress and other stakeholders. At the direction of Congress,
USDA has requested key studies of REE mission area research by experts
of the National Academies that resulted in recommendations for better
coordination, integration, and execution of USDA research programs, and
a finding that "the current organizational structure limits the combined
effectiveness of the REE agencies" (National Research Council, 2003).
Land-grant universities have also called for consolidation of USDA's
research agencies.

We heard from the American public through the Farm Bill Forums led by
Secretary Johanns and research was a major theme in all of the sessions.

From Indiana, we heard during a USDA listening session, "...we get the
highest return on investment on those dollars as about any money that's
going to be spent in the farm bill. And that allows us to be low-cost
producers of a safe and reliable food and fiber source." And, from
Delaware we heard, "It's imperative that the next farm bill will provide
support for continuing research and education. The future of American
agriculture will depend on it. Technological advances in agriculture
will help the next generation of American farmers."

Several speakers mentioned that the Department's dual research structure
of ARS/Land Grant Universities has strengths and weaknesses. The
intellectual and political challenges these institutions face have never
been more numerous or challenging. Others stressed the need for more
coordination of USDA's overall research funding strategy.

The Administration's farm bill proposals seek to address these issues
and to improve the efficiency of the research, extension, and education
programs in the Department. Specifically, the Administration is
recommending the following proposals for the 2007 Farm Bill:

1\. Consolidate USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and the
Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service into a
single agency named the Research, Education, and Extension Service
(REES) which will coordinate both intramural and extramural research,
extension, and education programs.

2\. Rename the Research, Education, and Economics (REE) mission area the
Office of Science.

3\. Establish an annual \$50 million Agricultural Bio-Energy and
Bio-Based Products Research Initiative to advance fundamental scientific
knowledge for the improved production of renewable fuels and bio-based
products.

4\. Establish an annual \$100 million Specialty Crop Research Initiative
to provide science-based tools for the specialty crop industry.

5\. Authorize USDA to conduct research and diagnostics for highly
infectious foreign animal diseases on mainland locations in the United
States.

6\. Invest an additional \$10 million in mandatory funding to be
available until expended for organic research. This new funding would
focus on conservation and environmental outcomes and new and improved
seed varieties especially suited for organic agriculture.

The following is more detailed information on each of these proposals.

**REORGANIZATION:**

Historically, an important foundation to the success of American
agriculture has been USDA's research, education and extension programs.
Federal investments, along with those of our land-grant universities and
other partners, have assured that these programs are world leading. For
this potential to be fully realized, the agricultural research,
education, and extension system must have well-coordinated and critical
leadership in place to address the complex roles for agriculture. In
addition, there are increasing expectations to use limited federal and
state resources optimally. To maintain and advance as a world leader in
agriculture research, education, and extension the REE mission area
needs to continually assure that it is effectively and efficiently
identifying priorities and managing resources. In view of this
commitment and the public input as previously mentioned, the
Administration is recommending the reorganization of USDA's research,
education, and economics mission area.

We have established five principles that will guide our new
organizational structure development:

Principle 1.  The reorganization process has a clear purpose with
focused objectives to establish a program management scheme, based on
agency functions, that assures closely coordinated decision making,
accountability, relevancy, and program interoperability.

Principle 2.   The foundation that underpins the reorganization is
continuity of the Department's mission and goals and continued focus on
national priorities.

Principle 3.  The reorganization process will encourage open and clear
communication with stakeholders and will continue to consider their
input.

Principle 4.  The reorganization will not address funding levels,
balance of funding, or authorities.

Principle 5.  The reorganization will incorporate current agency
missions, functions, and responsibilities---to enhance integration of
national program staff and programs both internally and externally, to
assure coordination, relevance and quality.  

The desired outcomes of the proposed reorganization include:

-   Improved planning and coordination of intramural and extramural
    research, education, and extension by a unified staff for each
    program area;

-   Increased emphasis on multidisciplinary work that engages all
    relevant disciplines

-   Focused resource allocation to generate substantial and measurable
    progress toward meeting national needs;

-   Robust evaluation of intramural and extramural activities within
    high-priority, integrated areas of science for relevance, quality,
    and impact before, during and after implementation;

-   Enhanced responsiveness of the agricultural science community to
    emerging and existing high priority issues;

-   Maximized effectiveness of agricultural education and extension
    systems through focused national leadership and decentralized
    nationwide implementation

-   Highly informed decision making and priority setting with
    streamlined methods to obtain stakeholder input and promote shared
    learning.

The proposed reorganization of the USDA's Research, Education, and
Economics (REE) mission area is outlined here in terms of the broad
conceptual framework for the new organization and the implementation
framework required to establish the new organization.

**OFFICE OF SCIENCE:**

The reorganized mission area office which is now named Research,
Education, and Economics will be renamed the Office of Science (OS),
which is consistent with the manner in which several other Federal
Departments and agencies designate their science efforts. The Office of
Science will have responsibility for the newly created Research,
Education and Extension Service (REES), formed from the existing
Agricultural Research Service and the Cooperative State Research,
Education, and Extension Service, as well as the Economic Research
Service (ERS) and the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).

The responsibilities of the Office of Science will be to develop science
policy and implement research, education, and extension programs for our
nation's agricultural system. The Office of Science also will identify
opportunities and act on issues that will have long-term national
implications. The research, education and extension programs of USDA
will remain under the leadership of a Sub-Cabinet official and will
serve as a clearly identifiable single scientific resource for
agriculture.

REES will be under the primary leadership of a Chief Scientist with
authority for program offices, program implementation and administrative
and resource management. The Chief Scientist will report to the Under
Secretary for the Office of Science.

Current formula funding authorities will be retained. Appropriated
funding will be under the authority of the new agency leader. The Chief
Scientist, in consultation with the Under Secretary, will have
administrative responsibility to allocate funds as appropriated by
Congress. All current formula funding authorities, including Hatch,
McIntire-Stennis, Smith-Lever, as well as authorities for 1890, 1994 and
Hispanic Serving Institutions would be retained.

The proposal also provides for a merger of the national program staffs
of ARS and CSREES. A single national program staff supporting both
intramural and extramural research and education programs would be far
more effective in communication, coordination, and planning.

Following concurrence on the described conceptual framework, the
reorganization will be implemented following a functional and program
integration analysis (program function, relationships, and impacts), and
in accordance with USDA regulation 1010 (USDA, 2006), which specifies
the requirements for detailed analysis of reorganization proposals
within USDA. USDA will also complete a detailed Civil Rights Impact
Analysis in accordance with USDA Office of Civil Rights regulation
4300-4 (USDA, 2003) including:

[]{.mark}

-   Budget analyses (cost of reorganization and annual operating costs),
    and

-   Human resources analyses (personnel), including Civil Rights impact.

**AGRICULTURAL BIOENERGY AND BIOBASED PRODUCTS RESEARCH INTIATIVE**

President Bush has provided strong guidance and leadership in our
nation's commitment to achieving greater energy security. In his State
of the Union speech this year, the President announced a bold initiative
to reduce gasoline consumption by 20% over the next 20 years and replace
it with renewable alternative fuels such as ethanol and by improving the
fuel economy of cars and light trucks.

The Administration's Farm Bill proposal provides \$50 million in annual
mandatory spending over a ten year period for the creation of the
Agricultural Bio-Energy and Bio-Based Products Research Initiative to
enhance the production and conversion of biomass to renewable fuels and
bioproducts. These funds will support a USDA bio-energy and bio-based
product laboratory network utilizing existing USDA research facilities
as well as engaging the nation's land-grant and other universities
through a competitive process and connecting them to the laboratory
network.

The new initiative will focus research and development efforts on two
objectives: 1) improving biomass production and sustainability and 2)
improving biomass conversion in biorefineries. Through this initiative
we will be better able to take full advantage of USDA's internal and
external research programs together with the network of extensive
knowledge and capabilities that reside within the land-grant
universities and other research institutions throughout the United
States. These activities will be closely coordinated with the Department
of Energy (DOE), and its national laboratories and centers of excellence
and other components of the Federal government.

American agriculture has been highly successful in capturing the sun's
energy and supplying our nation with an abundant food and fiber supply.
Through increased research and technology, we can continue this record
of success and move our nation toward greater energy independence.

**SPECIALTY CROPS**

The Administration is also recommending the establishment of a Specialty
Crop Research Initiative supported by \$100 million in annual mandatory
funding over a ten year period to provide science-based tools for the
specialty crop industry.

Fruits, vegetable, horticultural plants, and other specialty crops are
essential to healthy diets and the economic viability of American
agriculture. However, specialty crop producers face unique challenges
including pests and diseases; harvesting and processing issues; domestic
cost pressures (including labor issues); and the uncertainty of
international markets. Enhanced research, extension, and education
programs are needed to help the specialty crop industry address these
challenges.

During the Farm Bill listening sessions we repeatedly heard the call for
an increased investment in research for specialty crops. For example,
Charles from Georgia noted that "federal investment in agricultural
research dedicated to the economic vitality and long-term viability of
United States specialty crops has been extremely limited...Federal
investments in research for specialty crop production, processing,
marketing and consumption which influence public access to these vital
commodities must be re-emphasized in the next farm bill."

And Tom, at the California forum, stated: "Specialty crops are vital to
the health and well-being of all Americans, and increased consumption of
specialty crops will provide tremendous health and economic benefits to
both consumers and growers...The next Farm Bill must address specialty
crop issues much more effectively than in the past Farm Bills...Policy
areas that the next Farm Bill must address, with respect to the unique
needs of specialty crop growers, include the following: specialty crop
block grants, international trade, nutrition, marketing, invasive pest
and disease issues, research, competitive grants, and conservation
programs."

In addition to input from commodity and trade groups, the National
Agricultural Research, Education, Extension and Economics (NAREEE)
Advisory Board has identified specialty crops as a high priority and a
unique opportunity to strengthen American agriculture.

Funding recommended in the Administration's proposal will provide for
the creation of a Specialty Crop Research Initiative to address critical
needs throughout the specialty crops industry in all regions of the U.S.
Some of the specific issues to be addressed include: plant breeding,
genetics, genomics, food safety and quality, production efficiency, and
mechanization.

**FOREIGN ANIMAL DISEASE RESEARCH**

Research and diagnostics for highly infectious foreign animal disease
agents, such as Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) and Rinderpest viruses, are
currently confined to an off shore location at the Plum Island Animal
Disease Center (PIADC). The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has
initiated a process to move all the functions of PIADC to a new facility
to be named the National Bio and Agro Defense Facility (NBAF). In
anticipation that this facility will be built on the U.S. mainland, USDA
must be authorized to conduct important foreign animal disease research
on FMD and other select diseases at the new facility.

Research, diagnostics and training as well as vaccine development and
evaluation are critical components to fighting and mitigating the
effects of these diseases and securing the U.S. food and agricultural
system. Without this research, U.S. farmers and our entire food system
would be at greater risk.

The Administration proposes specific authorization for USDA to conduct
research and diagnostics for highly infectious disease agents, such as
FMD and Rinderpest on the U.S. mainland.

**ORGANIC RESEARCH**

The Administration's 2007 Farm Bill proposal also includes \$10 million
in mandatory funding to be available until expended for organic
research. This new funding would focus on conservation and environmental
outcomes and new and improved seed varieties especially suited for
organic agriculture. This initiative will provide new technologies to
help solve some of the unique challenges facing this growing segment of
the agriculture industry.

Thank you again for the opportunity to testify before the House
Agriculture Committee regarding the Administration's 2007 Farm Bill
proposals to strengthen the nation's agricultural research, extension
and education programs. I look forward to hearing your comments and
responding to your questions.

Thank you.