USDA postpones FSA office closures;
Lasseter new FSA administrator

Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns (left) discussed USDA’s decision to postpone proposed consolidation of FSA offices during a press conference at Sunbelt Expo. Georgia’s 1st U.S District Rep. Jack Kingston (center) and Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Saxby Chambliss (right) joined Johanns for the announcement.

Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns confirmed that the USDA is postponing its plan to consolidate an estimated 713 Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices nationwide during a press conference held Oct. 18, at the annual Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition in Moultrie.

However, Johanns maintained that changes must be made to the current structure of FSA county offices. In confirming a letter USDA Under Secretary J.B. Penn sent to Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Saxby Chambliss and House Agriculture Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte announcing the USDA’s willingness to set aside the proposed FSA Tomorrow plan, Johanns said what his agency wanted to do was open a dialogue between Congress and the USDA on how to best serve America’s farmers.

“We believe at this point it’s best to take a deep breath and work with the House and Senate to address the issue,” Johanns said. “We face a challenge. We have many offices where we have no staff or only one staff person. We have technology in those offices that doesn’t match the technology available to farmers. We don’t have the ability to access the Internet.”

When the issue of FSA office consolidation came up during the Farm Bill Forum held after the press conference, Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Saxby Chairman said, “There will be some reforms made in FSA, but it will be with your (farmers) input.”

Moultrie resident Teresa Lasseter addresses the press at Sunbelt Expo as the newly named USDA Farm Service Agency Administrator.

Johanns also announced Moultrie resident Teresa Lasseter as the new administrator of the FSA. Lasseter replaces former USDA FSA Director James Little who resigned Sept. 24. As FSA administrator, Lasseter will oversee farm programs, farm loans, commodity operations, conservation programs, disaster assistance and field operations at FSA offices nationwide. Lasseter served at FSA from 2001-2003, first as the Georgia FSA executive director and then as the associate administrator for farm programs in Washington, D.C. She previously served as executive director of the Georgia Agrirama Development Authority from 1993-1999. She worked for the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service, FSA’s predecessor, in several positions from 1977-1993, culminating as a county executive director for Lee County.

“I want time to look at the plan to see why they came up with what they did. We’ve got to look at the money to see how we can best serve our customers,” Lasseter said, when asked about taking the helm of FSA in light of the consolidation proposal. “I’m a little hesitant to leave Georgia because it’s home, but I’m willing to go because I have an opportunity to make a difference.”

Although the USDA has postponed its plan to consolidate FSA offices, the agency did carryout a voluntary employee buyout and voluntary early retirement first announced in August. Georgia lost 26 of its FSA employees through the program, Georgia FSA Director Steve Newton said.

“We lost eight percent of our work force in one day. We’re going to be shorthanded in some of our offices until we get new direction,” Newton said. “Customer service is still our number one priority. We just ask everyone to be patient and bear with us as we make adjustments to cover staffing needs.”

FSA documents pertaining to the buyouts accessed through the FSA web site cited a lack of funding in the projected FY 2006 budget, legislative changes affecting FSA programs, lack of needed skill sets in some areas and shifts in office workload as reasons for the employee buyouts. Some of the key program changes affecting staffing are the Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP), which has been transferred to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the elimination of the tobacco program due to the quota buyout.