USDA pick Rollins to 'follow and listen' to farmers on deportations

Brooke L. Rollins appears on course for confirmation as Agriculture secretary despite being pressed Thursday by Democrats about farm labor shortages that could result from President Donald Trump’s immigration policies.

Rollins told the Senate Agriculture Committee that her first 100 days “will be a fast and furious effort” to deploy the $10 billion in economic aid to farmers appropriated in the continuing resolution that funded the government until March 14.

She also indicated she would use her Section 5 authority over the Commodity Credit Corporation to compensate farmers for lost exports in the event that trading partners raise tariffs. The House had included a suspension of that authority in its farm bill last year, but the measure wasn’t enacted.

Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Ill., asked Rollins what Trump’s pledge of mass deportations would have on the agriculture sector, which relies heavily on immigrant labor. “So can we expect this administration to be raiding farms, going after the immigrant farm workers?” he asked.

“Listen, the president’s vision of a secure border and a mass deportation at a scale that matters is something I support,” Rollins said.

“I want to be extremely transparent, and I think that you deserve that,” she said. “My commitment is to help President Trump deploy his agenda in an effective way, while at the same time defending, as a confirmed secretary of Agriculture, our farmers and ranchers across this country.”

The USDA says about half of hired crop farm workers lack legal immigration status. From 2020 to 2022, only 32 percent of crop farm workers were born in the U.S. while 42% had no work authorization, the largest share of them being in California, it said.

But Rollins also said Trump’s deportation plans would initially focus on migrants who have committed crimes. “We will follow and listen to farmers and ranchers as this is moving,” she said.

Rollins said that she intends to work with the Labor secretary nominee, former Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer, on H-2A visas. Trump’s agenda raises questions about the H-2A program, which allows migrant workers to enter the U.S. for seasonal work. The USDA said the average H-2A visa period in 2023 was almost six months, and just over 378,000 positions were certified that year.

She was questioned about a litany of issues amid uncertainty in the agricultural sector as farmers face declining income, rising labor costs and concerns about the bird flu outbreak.

Farm income is forecast at $140.7 billion in 2024, an inflation-adjusted drop of $9.5 billion, or 6.3%, from 2023, the Agriculture Department’s Economic Research Service said this month. The agency said direct government payments are projected at $10.6 billion, a decline of $1.7 billion, or 13.6%.

“The costs for fuel, seed and fertilizer remain high, interest rates continue to be high, and farm gate prices are low. Farmers everywhere are losing money on every acre they cultivate, while farmers in certain parts of the country are losing hundreds of dollars per acre,” Chairman John Boozman, R-Ark., said in his opening statement.

Payment levels for many USDA programs have been stagnant and reflect levels set in the 2018 farm bill that are largely seen as insufficient to meet the needs of farmers and ranchers.

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., suggested USDA farm programs are set up to benefit bigger farms. He asked Rollins if she would commit to helping small farmers.

“One zillion percent, yes, which is Aggie math,” said Rollins, a native of Texas and a policy director for former GOP Gov. Rick Perry.

Several panel members asked about Rollins’ plan to address the bird flu outbreak. The Trump administration sent out a memo Tuesday directing the Health and Human Services Department to halt all external communications, including its regular press calls with the USDA about bird flu.

Ranking member Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said the announcements “have helped keep producers up to date with the latest information.” She urged Rollins to speak to HHS about those announcements.

Rollins said that bird flu and animal disease outbreaks are one of her top priorities.

Tariff concerns

Boozman, Klobuchar and other committee members questioned Rollins on Trump’s trade agenda and the possible impact on farmers. Trump has proposed 10 percent across the board tariffs on all imported goods, along with steep tariff increases on Chinese goods. He said Monday that he is considering imposing 25 percent tariffs on Mexico and Canada on Feb. 1.

The trade deficit for agriculture products is nearly $45 billion, according to Rollins.

Trump’s tariff agenda has raised concerns about a blow to agriculture exports, a repeat of developments during Trump’s first term. The USDA estimated that retaliation by Canada, China, the European Union, India, Mexico and Turkey caused more than a $27 billion loss in U.S. agricultural exports, or $13.2 billion annualized, from mid-2018 to the end of 2019. Retaliation from China accounted for 95 percent of the losses.

Former Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue used the Section 5 authority of the CCC to provide aid to farmers valued at $12 billion in 2018 and $16 billion in 2019, according to the Congressional Research Service.

Both Democrats and Republicans proposed suspending the secretary’s CCC authority to boost funding for other farm programs. But Trump’s trade policy could lead congressional Republicans to abandon that provision as they work on the next farm bill.

Rollins didn’t mention the CCC but said she’s spoken to Perdue.

“We are prepared to execute something similar,” Rollins said. “But also working with the White House to ensure that we can close those holes for our farmers and ranchers moving forward under any sort of tariff execution in the next coming days, in the next few years, and that will be a top priority of mine.”

Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., asked Rollins to say “you will throw your body in front of the bus” to ensure any tariffs take account of the impact on farmers, as was not done during the first Trump term. She urged Rollins to use her “good relationship” with Trump to advocate for farmers.

“Yes, my commitment is that there will be no sleeping, that we will work around the clock to ensure that our ag communities across this country are represented in those discussions and at the table and I will do everything in my power to elevate, preserve, honor, conserve that backbone of America,” Rollins said.

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