U-S Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has already made at least one mark on the U-S Department of Agriculture by realigning the “people’s department” created by President Abraham Lincoln. Perdue has moved all of the U-S-D-A agencies that serve farmers under one umbrella. The acting administrator for U-S-D-A’s Farm Service Agency, Steven Peterson, explains what it could mean to Illinois farmers;

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Steering through federal government agencies can be a tricky proposition for some. Peterson provides more on how the U-S-D-A realignment could work;

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The farmer Perdue nominated to oversee this part of his realignment plan still awaits U-S Senate confirmation. Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey’s nomination to be undersecretary for farm production and conservation has been held up over support of the federal renewable fuels standard. Perdue says he has been wearing a “Free Northey” t-shirt to get the U-S Senate to move on Northey’s nomination.