Tara Smith
Michael Torrey Associates announced Wednesday that Tara Smith joined the firm as vice president of federal affairs on August 12.

Smith was a senior professional staff member for the Senate Agriculture Committee when Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., was the ranking member. She was responsible for commodity programs, crop insurance and disaster assistance. Smith previously worked for the American Farm Bureau Federation.

She received a bachelor’s degree in political science from Davidson College in North Carolina and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Michigan, and grew up on a corn and soybean farm in central Illinois.