Release No. 0631.96

Statement

                              by 
             Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman 
        on Program Delivery and Customer Service at USDA
                       December 10, 1996


     "During my tenure as Secretary, I have actively sought to ensure that
Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs effectively serve minority and
socially disadvantaged farmers.  Today, I am initiating a national dialogue
on USDA's service to these communities as part of an intensified effort to
more effectively help socially disadvantaged and minority farmers continue
their family traditions and stay on the land.

     "First, I am directing each USDA agency that serves farmers to
establish an outreach office that reports directly to the administrator.  I
am directing the state offices of the Natural Resource Conservation Service
(NRCS), Rural Development (RD), and the Farm Service Agency (FSA) to
establish outreach offices that report directly to the state directors and
state conservationists.  These outreach offices will work directly with
constituency groups to improve the department's outreach and service to
minority and socially disadvantaged producers.  

     "Second, I will hold a national forum early next year on the delivery
of USDA programs.  All USDA farm program agencies, including Extension, will
be involved in the forum, as will headquarters, state, and county office
personnel.  The forum will provide an opportunity for minority and socially
disadvantaged farmers to discuss their concerns about USDA program delivery.
More importantly, it will identify new ways we can build partnerships and
improve the department's outreach and service. 

     "Third, the state offices of NRCS, RD, and FSA will hold simultaneous
statewide forums so that minority and socially disadvantaged farmers in
every state can participate in this national dialogue.  The outreach offices
of each agency will work with our constituencies and partners in setting up
these statewide meetings.  Following the national forum, each state will
submit a joint report to headquarters with recommendations for future
action, including ways to build more effective partnerships among socially
disadvantaged and minority producers and USDA leadership, including state
officials.   

     "Fourth, I am requesting that USDA's Office of Inspector General begin
an immediate investigation of the status of discrimination complaints
against FSA and recommend a plan for promptly resolving these complaints.  I
am also asking them to investigate the level of participation of minorities
and socially disadvantaged farmers in FSA's farm loan programs as well as
FSA's effectiveness in serving these communities.  I also will be directing
other USDA agencies to launch comprehensive analyses of their service to
minority and socially disadvantaged farmers and of their civil rights
complaint and enforcement systems.

     "I am committed to creating an environment in which every customer who
comes to one of our offices is treated fairly, effectively, and efficiently. 
Improving program delivery and customer service means reaching all
Americans. It means making sure that minority and socially disadvantaged
farmers have equal information about and access to farm loans, commodity
programs and crop insurance. It means using our outreach grants for these
farmers as effectively as possible.

     "We have already made real progress. Those initiatives include 
committing millions of dollars to outreach and training for minority and
socially disadvantaged farmers through colleges, universities, and community
organizations serving primarily minority and socially disadvantaged
populations. In addition, we have targeted loan funds specifically to
members of minority groups to encourage farm ownership and production.

     "But we can and will do better.  The actions I am announcing today are
the first steps to ensure that we do everything possible in the area of
civil rights." 

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