Today, Rep. Glenn "GT" Thompson, Republican Leader of the House Committee on Agriculture, was joined by every Republican member of the committee in sending a letter to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack questioning the Biden Administration’s overreaching executive actions.
In the letter, the Members write, “As you are aware, a recent Supreme Court decision, West Virginia v. EPA, clarified the limitations of certain agency action. Given this administration's concerning reliance on executive actions to advance some of its most radical priorities, we are compelled to underscore the implications of West Virginia v. EPA and to remind you of the limitations on your authority. Relatedly, we are requesting information regarding the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) efforts to review recent and pending agency actions in light of this important holding.”
The Members continue, “We remain concerned that a variety of USDA’s recent and pending actions rely on specious statutory interpretation to achieve political goals well beyond Congressional intent. From repeated abuses of the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act (Charter Act) to controversial livestock and poultry marketing reforms, the potential effects of these actions are far reaching and of enormous economic significance to our nation’s farmers, ranchers, foresters, and consumers… As the committee of jurisdiction overseeing your agency, we intend to exercise our oversight authority to ensure the Biden administration does not continue to exceed Congressional authorizations.”
To read the full letter, click here.
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