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Outlet profile

USDA

U.S. federal government agency

Owned byU.S. federal government; led by the Secretary of Agriculture, currently Brooke Rollins, a Trump appointee confirmed by the Senate in February 2025
FundingAnnual congressional appropriations; FY2026 discretionary budget of approximately $26.65 billion, with a total annual budget of roughly $213 billion including mandatory nutrition-assistance spending
On the administrationbroadly supportive

Background

The USDA was established on May 15, 1862, when President Abraham Lincoln signed legislation creating it as a standalone agency; it gained full Cabinet status in 1889. For most of its history it has administered farm commodity programs, food safety inspection, rural development loans, forestry management, and nutrition assistance — the latter now accounts for roughly 71 percent of its $213 billion annual budget through programs such as SNAP. The agency's editorial and policy emphasis has shifted with each administration: Democratic administrations have generally expanded nutrition programs and conservation mandates, while Republican ones have tended toward deregulation and production-focused agriculture policy. During Trump's second term, the USDA underwent significant institutional change: by the end of 2025 the department had lost roughly 24,000 employees — nearly 27 percent of its workforce — largely through DOGE-linked deferred resignation programs, drawing criticism from farm groups and Democratic lawmakers who said reduced staffing hurt farmer services and slowed responses to animal disease outbreaks such as screwworm. In July 2025 Secretary Rollins announced a formal reorganization described as restoring the department's 'core mission' of supporting agriculture. USDA communications under Rollins have been closely coordinated with Trump administration messaging, including an op-ed Rollins published in Fox News promoting administration consumer-protection actions.

Sources

  1. United States Department of Agriculture — Wikipedia
  2. USDA lost 24,000 workers under Trump, hurting critical resources for farmers — Nebraska Public Media
  3. Secretary Rollins Announces USDA Reorganization — USDA.gov
  4. Secretary Brooke Rollins Takes Bold Action in First 30 Days at USDA — USDA.gov
  5. ICYMI: Secretary Rollins Pens Fox News Op-Ed — USDA.gov
  6. FY26 USDA Appropriations Bill Approved — NCSHA
  7. USDA Staffing Shortages Strain FSA and NRCS Services Across Rural America — DTN/Progressive Farmer
  8. A 2025 Timeline of U.S. Federal Food Safety Changes Under the Trump Admin — Food Safety Magazine

Profile compiled 2026-09-05; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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