Indiana Links to Government Information: Agriculture

General Interest

U.S. Department of Agriculture-Provides one-stop access to overal U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) resources and information produced by affiliated agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service and National Agricultural Statistics Service.

2007 USDA Farm Bill Information-Provides information about 2007 farm legislation.

Indiana Dept. of Agriculture-This Indiana State agency seeks to promote Indiana agriculture and rural development.

Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service-Academic organization conducting research and publicizing research findings about Indiana agriculture to benefit Indiana's agricultural economy and scientific research.

Consumer Safety

National Agricultural Safety Database-This U.S. Centers for Disease Control website features numerous resources on agricultural safety issues.

U.S. Animal, Plant, and Health Inspection Service-Federal agency responsible for protecting U.S. animals and plants from agricultural pests and diseases including threats to the U.S.' food supply.

U.S. Food Safety & Inspection Service-This USDA agency is responsible for protecting the safety of the U.S.' food supply system.

U.S. Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration-USDA charged with facilitating the marketing of livestock, poultry, meat, cereals, and related agricultural products and promoting fair and competitive trading practices to benefit U.S. consumers and agriculture.

National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health-Agriculture-This Centers for Disease Control organization conducts research on various occupational safety matters including this site on agricultural safety.

Federal Grants

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance-This resource provides one-stop access to federal grants produced by U.S. Government agencies.

Laws, Regulations, and Court Decisions

GPO Access-Provides access to U.S. Government legal, legislative, and regulatory resources such as the U.S. Code, congressional bills and committee reports on legislation, and the Code of Federal Regulations. Federal laws and regulations on agriculture will be in Title 7 of the U.S. Code and Code of Federal Regulations.

House of Representatives Agriculture Committee-One of two congressional committees responsible for funding and conducting oversight of U.S. agricultural programs. Indiana representative Brad Ellsworth is a member of this committee during the 111th Congress (2009-2010).

Senate Agriculture Committee-Senate committee charged with funding and overseeing U.S. agricultural programs and responsible for beginning the process of confirming officials such as the Secretary of Agriculture. Senator Richard Lugar is a member and former chair of this committee.

Board of Contract Appeals Decisions-USDA entity issuing legal decisions in contract disputes involving private sector agencies.

Research Databases and Publications

Agricultural Marketing Service-Markets and promotes U.S. agricultural programs and administers various food programs.

Agricultural Research Service-Serves as USDA's principal scientific research agency.

Congressional Research Service Reports-Provides analysis of public policy issues for members of Congress.
(Courtesy-University of North Texas Libraries)

Economic Research Service-Conducts analytical research and analysis on various agricultural commodities and reviews agricultural economic trends and developments.

Farm Service Agency-This agency is responsible for stabilizing farm income, promoting agricultural land and water conservation, providing credit for new or disadvantaged farmers of ranchers, and providing financial assistance when natural disasters occur.

Forest Service-Administers U.S. national forests and grasslands and conducts a variety of forest-related research.

Government Accountability Office-This congressional support agency evaluates the performance of government programs for Congress and issues numerous reports each year documenting strengths and weaknesses in these programs.

National Agricultural Statistics Service-Compiles and publishes agricultural statistics including the quinquennial Census of Agriculture. Features links to state agricultural statistical websites.

Natural Resources Conservation Service-Promotes the conservation of natural resources with particular emphasis on soil conservation. Publishes soil surveys of individual U.S. counties. Click here for Purdue Libraries paper holdings.

Office of Inspector General-Office responsible for evaluating the performance and efficiency of USDA programs and has the authority to investigate crimes committed against these programs.

Statistics

Census of Agriculture-Conducted every five years (e.g. 1997 and 2002), this resource provides exhaustive information about U.S. agricultural trends and developments.

NASS Publications-Gateway to statistical publications on U.S. agricultural weather, price information, commodity production, and numerous other topics.

Indiana Agricultural Statistics Service-Provides detailed statistics and analysis on Indiana agriculture.

USDA Chief Financial Officer-This office administers USDA financial programs including the departmental budget.

Maintained by Professor Bert Chapman-Government Information & Political Science Librarian-Purdue University Libraries. For further information contact one of Indiana's Federal Depository Libraries