STATEMENT FROM THE GOVERNOR ON THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

TRENTON - Governor Jon S. Corzine today issued the following statement regarding his proposal to consolidate the state Department of Agriculture:

"I understand that farmers are angry. I understand, too, that some may choose only to see irony in my proposal to cut the Department of Agriculture in the Garden State. That said, the taxpayers of New Jersey are deeply concerned with the cost of government and demand that we set our priorities to deliver services efficiently.

"These budget cuts, painful as they may be for all of us, are what the times demand. Years of over-spending and over-borrowing have forced this state into an incredibly difficult - but valuable - public discussion about the priorities of government. I laid out my priorities in my budget address - education, public safety and protecting the most vulnerable.

"Consolidating the functions of the Department of Agriculture into other government agencies is not an effort to short-change the economic and cultural importance of farms to this great state. It is part of an across-the-board effort by the state to do more with less. The critical functions of the department will remain, and the state will continue as a staunch advocate for farms and agri-business. Regardless of where the phone rings, the state will be there to assist in the same ways it does now.

"No initiative currently being undertaken by the department will be left out. Neither do we intend to jeopardize federal funding for agriculture. We are looking to other states without separate Agriculture departments " Rhode Island and Alaska – that continue to receive federal dollars in order to ensure that we are not losing federal money as we seek to cut state costs.

"Our ongoing effort to get New Jersey's fiscal house in order will inevitably benefit every New Jersey resident, including its farmers, who remain a boon to this state's history, culture and economy."

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Photos from Governor Corzine's public events are available in the Governor's Newsroom section on the State of New Jersey web page, http://www.nj.gov/governor/news/