FSA releases office closure hearing dates, faces pressure
As the Farm Service Agency released a schedule of dates for hearings on plans to close county offices around the country, Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, sent Agriculture Secretary Vilsack a letter this week asking him to provide a rationale for the closure of offices in Ohio and an assurance that farmers would continue to get the same level of service.
In a letter Thursday, Brown noted that he had co-authored a provision in the 2008 farm bill that placed a two-year moratorium on closure or relocation of county offices and a public process by which offices would be considered for closure.
Brown noted that offices within 20 miles of another FSA office were exempted, as was relocation within the same county.
In a letter Thursday, Brown noted that he had co-authored a provision in the 2008 farm bill that placed a two-year moratorium on closure or relocation of county offices and a public process by which offices would be considered for closure.
Brown noted that offices within 20 miles of another FSA office were exempted, as was relocation within the same county.
