Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz helped shape farm policy during his 12 years in Congress and pushed for policies that advocated for farmers and ranchers, particularly those who are veterans of the armed services.
The former House member, and now Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate pick for the 2024 Democratic ticket, has been hailed by Democrats as a boon to reach Midwestern voters.
The Harris campaign, in announcing the pick, touted the agricultural aspect of Walz’s background: “He became a member of Congress in a Republican district by representing the needs of farmers and rural America.”
The Census Bureau includes Minnesota in the Midwest region, which includes a region called the “Corn Belt,” with over 127 million acres of agricultural land that primarily grows corn and soybeans, among other commodities.
Walz grew up on his family farm in Nebraska before enlisting in the Nebraska National Guard at age 17. As a veteran with roots in agriculture, he rose to be the top-ranked Democrat on the Veterans’ Affairs Committee and fourth-ranked Democrat on the Agriculture Committee.
He sponsored legislation during his last term in the 115th Congress to expand veterans’ access to farm programs, and some provisions were incorporated into the 2018 farm bill.
Those provisions expanded access to farm education and training and all USDA agriculture programs to individuals who obtained veteran status within the last decade.
They also provided crop insurance benefits for veterans who gained their status in the last five years, including an additional 10 percent premium subsidy for additional coverage policies that have premium subsidy and an exemption to the catastrophic risk protection fee of $655 per crop per county.
“I came to Congress to write farm bills. I came to get policy right,” Walz said during the House Agriculture Committee farm bill markup on April 18, 2018.
Walz was recorded as not voting on final passage of the farm bill on the House floor. During the markup, he criticized Republicans because they “locked out” Democrats from the drafting of the bill.
“I don’t question your heart, I don’t question your motivations. What I would ask you to do is to have the decency and the courage to know this is not how it’s normally done,” Walz said at the time. “But truly now the legacy is, the legacy is the Ag Committee before today and the Ag Committee after today.”
The current farm bill, which expires on Sept. 30, extended policies that were enacted by the 2018 law, including the provisions from Walz’s veterans bill.
Walz also introduced legislation to expand opportunities in conservation, credit, rural development, research and crop insurance for young and beginning farmers in 2011, 2013 and 2017. But none of the three bills were enacted into law.
Since leaving Congress in 2019 to become Minnesota’s governor, he has continued to prioritize agriculture. In 2021, he established the Governor’s Committee on the Safety, Health, and Wellbeing of Agricultural and Food Processing Workers.
One of the objectives of the committee was to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic by providing resources and outreach for the 2021 farming season, according to an executive order. The committee also was tasked with providing government agencies, local groups and employer and worker organizations with a forum to analyze data, coordinate resources and plan for future growing seasons.
Walz extended the committee’s existence in July, tasking the group in part with an objective to design “a proactive strategy and plan” to “protect and promote the safety, health, and wellbeing of agricultural and food processing workers.”
“Minnesota’s agriculture and food processing workers work hard every day to put food on the table for families across the country,” Walz said in news release at the time. “The health, safety, and wellbeing of these workers remains a priority and I’m grateful that the work will continue to ensure their voices are heard and address the challenges facing this industry.”
His focus on young and beginning farmers also carried over into his governorship. He visited a farm in Pine Island last month and spoke about state resources available to new farmers, including the Beginning Farmer Tax Credit, Beginning Farmer Loan Program and the Down Payment Assistance Grant.
“Minnesota is built on agriculture. We rely on our farmers to feed our families and drive the economy and it is vital that we support our farmers and create opportunities for new folks to enter the occupation, especially amid difficult times,” Walz said in a news release.
Walz’s ties to agriculture tee him up to go head-to-head with Republican nominee Donald Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, who also represents the Midwest. Vance, who was elected in 2022, has co-sponsored six agricultural bills and resolutions.
One of the bills Vance has co-sponsored would establish additional reporting requirements for agricultural foreign investment disclosures. It would apply the reporting requirements to each foreign individual who holds at least 1 percent interest in the transfer or acquisition of agricultural land.
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