Rep. Gabe Vasquez Supports the USDA Field Office Stability Act to Keep USDA Offices Open for Farmers and Rural Communities

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On June 25, 2026, U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez (NM-02) cosponsored bipartisan legislation led by Reps. Sharice Davids (D-KS) and Derek Schmidt (R-KS) to prevent the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) from closing essential services due to staffing shortages — the USDA Field Office Stability Act. 

This bill prohibits USDA from closing or relocating Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Farm Service Agency (FSA), and Rural Development (RD) county and field offices and requires minimum staffing levels to ensure farmers, ranchers, and rural communities continue to have reliable, in-person access to USDA services during regular business hours. 

During a visit earlier this month to Myster E. Farms in Albuquerque, Vasquez met with local farmers and the Center for Southwest Culture to discuss the direct impact USDA staffing issues have on communities in New Mexico. He also heard concerns about staffing concerns from almost every member of his Agriculture Advisory Group during his most recent meeting with the group in June. Vasquez took these concerns directly to Secretary Rollins that same week. 

New Mexico alone has lost 640 USDA employees between 2025 and 2026, putting New Mexico in the top 10% of states experiencing rapid staff shortages and plunging local producers into uncertainty and lengthy delays. 

Vasquez’s support for the USDA Field Office Stability Act reflects his commitment to holding the USDA accountable and his support for the agricultural industry: 

• In April 2025, Vasquez introduced the Honor Farmer Contracts Act to ensure the USDA fulfills its commitments to farmers by releasing frozen funds and preventing it from canceling legally binding contracts.
• He launched the NM-02 Agriculture Advisory Group, composed of agricultural leaders from across the district, and connected local farmers, ranchers, and business owners from New Mexico directly with House Agriculture Committee Chairman Thompson.
• Introduced the Strengthening Our Workforce Act to provide non-citizens working in critical sectors — including agriculture workers — a path to lawful permanent status, bringing much-needed stability for workers who make up the backbone of the American economy. 
• He led the bipartisan Farm Workforce Support Act to advance H-2A visa reform for the farm workers who sustain our agriculture industry.

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