Nov 6, 2020Costa, Scott to seek chair position of House ag committee
Reps. Jim Costa (D-CA) and David Scott (D-GA) have announced they will seek to fill the soon-to-be-vacated chair position of the House Committee on Agriculture.
The chair position is currently held by longtime Minnesota Congressman Collin Peterson, who lost his reelection bid to Republican challenger Michelle Fischbach. Costa and Scott, along with Marcia Fudge (D-OH), are the senior majority members of the committee.
“The Committee on Agriculture should reflect the changing landscape of agriculture in the United States,” Costa said via press release. “As a third-generation farmer, I have the firsthand experience, expertise and passion to connect with rural Americans and lead this committee through the difficult challenges ahead.”
Costa has been on the committee since 2005 and served on the conference committee for the 2014 and 2018 Farm Bills. He represents a large geographic region of northeastern California, which produces a significant amount of the country’s milk, fruit and nuts.
Scott, who represents Georgia’s 13th district, which includes areas west and south of Atlanta, has been a member of the committee since joining Congress in 2003. He is the chair of the Subcommittee on Commodity Exchanges, Energy and Credit.
“Today, our nation faces perhaps the most significant struggles any of us have seen in our lifetime,” Scott said though a press release. “Across rural and urban communities and from young to old, the threats posed by global illness, hunger, financial insecurity, climate change, and natural disasters are significant. As our nation’s legislative body, it is the duty of Congress to address, through this Committee, the insecurities plaguing our citizens and provide the means for a more fruitful existence.”
