Thank you for inviting me here tonight.
Congressman Gilchrest – thank you for that kind introduction and for your consistent leadership on behalf of our farmers and in the fight to improve the health of the Chesapeake Bay. I look forward to working with you to make Maryland an environmental leader.
I also want to thank Dave Miller, Faith Rossing and so many others from the Maryland Agriculture Council for hosting us tonight. And for giving us an opportunity to recognize two of our outstanding Maryland families - the Dell family and the Malkus family.
Your dedication and your stewardship have set a standard in our State, and I want to thank you for your heart and your stellar example.
It is truly a privilege to be here among hundreds of farmers from across Maryland.
Thomas Jefferson once wrote, “Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens. They are the most vigorous, the most independent, the most virtuous, and they are tied to their country and wedded to its liberty and interests by the most lasting bands.”
Sadly, in the last few years, those “lasting bands” have been stretched to the breaking point by tremendous challenges – from the pressures of development to the dwindling availability of open, affordable farmland.
And from the graying of the agricultural community to the growth of foreign competitor markets.
You have watched as suburban sprawl makes its way further into our countryside. In some instances, you've had your very “right to farm” called into question.
These are not easy times for our farmers.
But while we face many challenges, we also have tremendous opportunities. What opportunity?
The opportunity to strengthen and grow our small businesses and family owned farms.
The opportunity to protect and preserve our farmland and open space
The opportunity to empower our young farmers cultivating their own futures on the strength of our past.
And, the opportunity to enjoy the health of Chesapeake Bay for generations to come.
We have our work cut out for us.
And, it doesn't help that the dark clouds of fiscal deficits are haunting our horizon. (You know a long campaign is over when instead of budget surpluses, the papers are printing horror stories of budget deficits)
But, while we can't make perfect, we can always make progress. And we have no better example than that of our leaders here tonight.
Secretary Lewis Riley – a guiding force in Maryland agriculture for years – has given us much of the strength we have to build on today. Because of his hard work, 90% of our farms have developed and implemented nutrient management plans. And, 300,000 acres of farmland have improved their sustainability with cover crops.
Mr. Secretary, we not could ask for more dedicated public servant. And, we wish you all the best in your retirement.
We also have the strong voice of the Maryland Farm Bureau and the leadership of Buddy Hance to help us move forward. Buddy – I look forward to working very closely with you and the Farm Bureau in the years ahead.
Finally, over the last several months, we have had the distinct advantage of a very talented and experienced transition team.
Our former Agriculture Secretary Hagner Mister and Lucie Snodgrass led this very important process.
But they could not have done it without the broad cross section of grain and dairy farmers, cattlemen and nurserymen, industry experts and former elected and appointed officials who rolled up their sleeves to strengthen Maryland agriculture.
Their report is critical to our administration and our new secretary.
Filling Lew Riley's shoes has not been an easy task, but – with hard work – we were able to recruit one of the most capable and professional administrators in the country. Tonight, it is my honor to announce Roger Richardson as our nominee for Secretary of Agriculture.
There is no one who understands the fundamental importance of our agriculture community better than Roger. He is a sixth generation Maryland farmer with a lifetime of experience – not only growing and preserving the land – but also of serving his community as Director of the American Corn Growers Association and President of the National Association of Farmer Elected Committees, just to name a few.
Roger, I look forward to working with you – and our agricultural community – on behalf of Maryland's farmers and rural business.
As we look to our shared future, we remember that Maryland has always been defined by the opportunities our beloved land and water have given us to provide for our families, restore our spirit, and strengthen our State.
And we remember that the decisions we make today determine – in a very real way – whether future growth and development determines Maryland's character, or whether Maryland's character determines the nature of future growth.
I think we can all agree that our shared future starts with doing more for our farmers.
And that's why we are advancing first with the Agricultural Stewardship Act of 2006. Landmark legislation, passed under the leadership of Lew Riley, to initiate significant reforms and strengthen our agricultural community.
We have already started implementing their recommendations, this year, with $10 million for our 24 Soil Conservation Districts.
We have provided record funding for cover crops while tripling Maryland's investment in MARBIDCO – the Maryland Agricultural and Resource-Based Industry Development Corporation.
And, we are going to do more to help our farmers, especially the next generation, secure the tools they need to adapt to our changing farm economy – ensuring sustainable profits year after year.
Without our farmers, without our family farms, Maryland would lose much of her beauty and her character. Together, we will not allow that to happen.
Second, in recent years, staffing cuts have reduced operations to baseline levels – jeopardizing our ability to respond effectively in the event of an outbreak… a pest influx like the emerald ash borer… or even a threat to homeland security.
Through hard work and persistence, we will elevate the status of agriculture in our State by giving our Department of Agriculture – and its critical scientific, technical and regulatory functions – the requisite staff and resources to provide a lasting foundation for our agricultural community.
Third, we are going to expand opportunities to enjoy the health of the land, the water and tributaries , and open space we love to more people rather than fewer.
Farmers have been one of our strongest partners in the fight to preserve our open space and resources – a fact that's not always universally acknowledged.
You are to thank for one of the most successful agriculture preservation programs in the nation – well on its way to preserving 500,000 acres that, most likely, would otherwise have been developed.
I pledge to you that I will do everything in my power to help us continue our progress and lead in this endeavor.
By building on your strength and the strength of our Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation, we can continue to maintain the role you have forged for us as a leader in agricultural preservation.
To that end, we will invest in our priorities – providing an additional $138 million to improve local water and wastewater systems. And we are going to make sure that every dollar of Open Space funding this year – an estimated $289 million – will be spent on Open Space.
We are also going to restore accountability with the development of BayStat – a performance measurement tool to help up assess our progress and drive improvement.
Finally, we are committed to finding new outlets for Maryland grown, raised, and produced products like corn and soybeans – including the development of ethanol production and a new soybean crushing facility.
Together, we will partner with our Department of Economic Development to encourage direct marketing and to promote our farm products more aggressively –here and abroad.
I know we have discussed a good amount of policy and initiatives. And, without a doubt, they will all require a lot of hard work.
But, in the end, I think this is a group that understands that we are indeed “tied to our country and wedded to its liberty and interests by the most lasting bands.”
And so it is in our One Maryland.
To support our family farms and increase their profitability. To preserve and protect more farmland and open space. To restore the health of our land and water for the next generation.
These are our shared goals. In the months and years ahead, I'm going to need your help. We are defined… and will always be defined… by the strength of our farmland, our farming community and our rural business.
And I really look forward to working with all of you as we build our all too critical agricultural foundation – not only for ourselves, but for our children and theirs.
Thank you.