WASHINGTON – Congressman Rob Wittman (VA-01) released the following statement after voting in favor of H.R. 2, the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018:
“Food security is national security. This bill keeps family farmers and foresters that live right here in the First District in mind by providing them certainty and stability as they continue to provide food and fiber to markets across the world. Agriculture and forestry is one of the most important economies in the Commonwealth, employing over 442,000. This Farm Bill provides solid support for our rural economies and provides low cost foods to consumers.
“Many rural Americans have little to no access to broadband, and, here in Virginia, almost 29 percent of people living in rural areas lack access to any broadband service at all. We often take our access to high-speed internet for granted. This bill helps rural communities to combat the opioid crisis and improves broadband delivery services in rural areas to the unserved. As major priorities of mine, I am thrilled that these provisions were included, and I was proud to vote for them. H.R. 2 also contained important forestry management reforms that will be critical to protecting our communities from future wildfire destruction.”
“This bill includes much-needed reforms to promote work and individual success and self-sufficiency. By strengthening work requirements, more and more people are encouraged to pursue opportunities. Our economy is booming. As we have learned month after month through job reports, new jobs are created every day across the country. We must now connect Americans with those jobs to get them back on their feet. I have been working to bridge the skills gap between what the marketplace has and what our employers need. I think that work can be applied here and I hope this will further empower states to bridge that gap as well.”
H.R. 2 the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018 passed the House by a strong bipartisan vote of 369 to 47 and is headed to the president’s desk for his signature.
Congressman Rob Wittman represents the 1st District of Virginia. He serves on the House Natural Resources Committee and the House Armed Services Committee, where he is the Chairman of the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee.
