Dear John,

Agriculture has long been the lifeblood of rural communities in Oregon. So as the coronavirus continues to rock our economy and the agriculture sector, we don’t risk just losing critical jobs that families depend on, we’re also facing serious blows to our food supply and the vitality of our rural economies.

That’s why as your U.S. Senator, I’ve been leading the charge to support these businesses and the families who rely on them. As the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that oversees funding for the USDA, I worked to get over $23.5 billion in previous bills specifically to help agricultural producers weather this storm.  And when Oregon’s farmers and agricultural producers told me they were being shut out of the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, I fought for a specific provision in the following coronavirus relief bill that would direct the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to make these businesses eligible -- and kept the pressure on the agency until they followed through.

While these loans are a big step in the right direction, I know more work needs to be done to help Oregon’s farmers and agricultural communities. To help make sure those needs are met, I’m pushing USDA to address assistance delays and swiftly administer the aid that Congress allocated for America’s agricultural producers.

On behalf of all Oregonians, I thank our agricultural producers and farmworkers for their invaluable contributions to our communities -- contributions that have only become more essential during this public health emergency. Going forward, I’m going to keep up the fight for the resources our agricultural businesses and workers need to keep the lights on and make it to the other side of this public health emergency.

All my best,
Jeff