Rollins cuts millions in excess spending on her first day in office
On Feb. 14, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins undertook significant actions on seven key initiatives during her inaugural day in office, demonstrating her commitment to advancing the departments goals.
In a concerted effort to further President Donald J. Trump’s agenda, Rollins is committed to enhancing the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) support for American farmers, ranchers, loggers and the broader agricultural community.
Rollins held a media conference at the White House on her first day as well, where she discussed key priorities for American farmers and ranchers, addressing food prices due to the failed policies of the Biden administration, food stamp reform and working with Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to optimize the department.
Cutting wasteful spending
In one of her first actions, Rollins reviewed and implemented findings from DOGE to optimize the USDA workforce and stop wasteful spending.
Already, USDA has identified more than $132 million in excess spending and has terminated 78 contracts.
Additionally, more than 1,000 contracts are currently under review, and the USDA has also identified and canceled 948 employee trainings, 758 of which focused on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) alone.
“I welcome DOGE’s efforts at USDA because we know its work makes us better, stronger, faster and more efficient. I will expect full access and transparency to DOGE in the days and weeks to come,” Rollins states in a press release.
According to USDA, since Jan. 20, the agency has begun a comprehensive review of contracts, personnel and employee trainings and DEI programs. In many cases, programs funded by the Biden administration focused on DEI initiatives and are contrary to the values of millions of American taxpayers.
An example of one of the recent cuts was terminating or discontinuing efforts before they went into effect, such as neighborhood electric vehicle utility vans and media contracts totaling $2.77 million.
Action items
According to a Feb. 14 USDA press release, Rollins issued a memorandum to rescind all DEI programs and celebrations. Instead, USDA will reprioritize unity, equality, meritocracy and color-blind policies.
“We will neither commemorate nor celebrate our immutable characteristics, neither among ourselves nor among Americans at large. We will instead celebrate the things that make us American – merit, faith and liberty first among them,” Rollins states. “All Americans deserve equal dignity, and at this department they will receive it. On this precipice of the 250th anniversary of our Revolution, we will rededicate ourselves to ‘the proposition all men are created equal.’”
Rollins also sent a letter to the nation’s governors outlining her vision for USDA and inviting them to participate in a new “laboratories for innovation” initiative to create bold solutions to long-ignored challenges.
In the letter she states, “I am deeply honored President Trump has put his trust in me to lead the USDA, and I will honor and uphold this trust each and every day by addressing the pressing challenges facing rural communities and opening a new chapter of prosperity in rural America.”
In another notice sent to state leaders, Rollins encouraged participation in pilot programs to reform the food stamp program, outlining principles of reform to establish robust work requirements.
“We have a historic opportunity to improve nutrition programs to better serve individuals who need additional support,” she states. “Our shared goal should be to lift millions of Americans out of dependency and into hopeful futures and unimagined possibilities.”
Recent topics
USDA’s immediate focus is controlling the avian flu outbreak, and the agency is considering vaccination strategies while acknowledging differing opinions.
However, the goal is to stabilize egg prices and support poultry farmers facing economic losses.
During the National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville, Ky. Rollins responded to the high number of bird flu cases across the U.S. leading to a huge loss in revenue for poultry producers, as well as a huge jump in egg and poultry prices for consumers.
“The avian bird flu is a big issue,” says Rollins. “After getting confirmed, the very first briefing I had was on this issue. We are currently mapping out multiple different potential solutions.”
Rollins also delivered a video message and a letter of gratitude to U.S. Forest Service firefighters for their recent heroic actions to save lives and curb the devastating wildfires in California.
“I want to express my deepest gratitude to all of those who risked their lives during the harrowing fires in southern California. Your courage, grit and determination to protect our communities represents the very best of America,” she writes.
She continues, “The USDA has the largest and most sophisticated wildland firefighting workforce in the world, and I am honored to serve and support them.”
Melissa Anderson is the editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.
