Governor Kristi Noem testified in front of the U.S. House Committee on Agriculture regarding “The Danger China Poses to American Agriculture.” You can find video of her opening testimony here. You can find her remarks as-prepared for delivery below:
Chairman Thompson, Ranking Member Scott, and members of the committee. It is such an honor to be with so many of you here today. As a former member of this committee, I know well the vital work you do each day to protect our nation’s food supply and be stewards of our treasured land.
I come before you today as the 33rd Governor of South Dakota. My home state is known for the gorgeous Black Hills, rolling plains, and, of course, the historic and iconic Mount Rushmore. If you haven’t visited us yet, consider this a personal invitation.
Agriculture is our number one industry, followed by tourism, so protecting our land is incredibly important to our people.
This year marks the 30th year since I began working on agriculture policy. When I was just twenty-two, my father was killed in a tragic accident on our family farm – and I soon became the general manager of our business operations, which I ran for the next several decades with my family.
After learning of the heavy death tax burden our family faced because of this tragedy, I got angry and started showing up at meetings. I was quickly chosen to serve on local ag commodity boards. Then, I was selected by then-Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, a Democrat, to serve on the Farm Service Agency State Committee. This is the committee that oversees all federal farm programs in the state.
Over the next several years, I served on many task forces and commissions dedicated to helping disadvantaged and underserved producers and bringing efficiency to programs at the federal level.
Click here to read more sd.gov
Photo Credit: gettyimages-sizsus
Categories: South Dakota, General