The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities’ Board on Agricultural Assembly/Experiment Station Section calls upon Congress and the administration to provide $11.5 billion to rebuild the invaluable network rural and main campus of agricultural research infrastructure administered through the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). We seek funding for this request through an economic stimulus bill.
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Out now, a study from Gordian and the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) shows close to $11.5 billion is necessary for building repairs and renovations at USDA funded schools of agriculture. Sixty-nine percent of the buildings at these schools are more than 25 years old and require urgent attention to remain safe, useful, and equipped to address this century’s greatest challenges, from food security to climate change and beyond. Additionally, two-thirds of this deferred maintenance is impacting research and teaching, inhibiting the growth and development of tomorrow’s scientific workforce.

The Gordian study makes clear that unless the federal government moves quickly to address the growing funding gap for schools of agriculture, the United States risks falling behind on the world stage. Countries like China have spent the last several years increasing investments into their agricultural enterprise. APLU is urging stakeholders to help sound the alarm and make clear to lawmakers that investments in schools of agriculture can transform our research capacity, grow America’s biobased economies, secure domestic food supply for the long term, prepare to face a dynamically changing climate, and advance U.S. global competitiveness.