Texas Department of Agriculture

The main offices of the Texas Department of Agriculture are located on the 11th floor of the Stephen F. Austin State Office Building

The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) is a state agency within the state of Texas, which is responsible for matters pertaining to agriculture, rural community affairs, and related matters.

TDA was established by the 13th Texas Legislature in 1907. TDA is headed by the Texas Agriculture Commissioner, one of four heads of state agencies which is elected by statewide ballot (and the only one where the provision for statewide election is mandated by legislative action, not enshrined in the Texas Constitution) for a four-year term, concurrent with the gubernatorial election (prior to 1978, the term was two years before a statewide amendment in 1974 extended it to four years). John C. White is the longest-serving Agriculture Commissioner in Texas history, with 26 years of service (1951-1977): having been elected in 1950 and reelected in 1952, 1954, 1956, 1958, 1960, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1968, 1970, 1972 and again in 1974.

The department is headquartered on the 11th floor of the Stephen F. Austin State Office Building at 1700 North Congress Avenue in Austin.^[1][2]

The mission statement of the Texas Department of Agriculture is: Partner with all Texans to make Texas the nation's leader in agriculture, fortify our economy, empower rural communities, promote healthy lifestyles, and cultivate winning strategies for rural, suburban and urban Texas through exceptional service and the common threads of agriculture in our daily lives.

Commissioners of the Department of Agriculture

NOTE: Milner was appointed as Commissioner prior to the first statewide election in 1908.

Divisions

The department is divided into the following divisions:

• Administrative Services—Provides TDA support functions^[3]
• Communications—Provides media information, public information and TDA internal support services^[4]
• Financial Services—Provides TDA accounting, budgetary, and purchasing functions^[5]
• Food and Nutrition—Administers the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s School Lunch, School Breakfast, Summer and After School Snack Programs in Texas public schools, including technical assistance and training to school district child nutrition professionals to help them stay abreast of state and federal policies, as well as processing of reimbursements to schools participating in the Child Nutrition Programs^[6]
• Legal Affairs—Responsible for providing legal services and counsel to all TDA programs and divisions. Legal Affairs is also responsible for enforcement of the department's regulatory functions, including prosecutions and settlements, and is the liaison with the Texas Attorney General^[7]
• Office of Policy and External Relations—Provides support to the Commissioner and the agency by monitoring and analyzing federal and state legislative and regulatory activities that affect Texas Agricultural producers and consumers as well as studying issues that affect rural Texas; also responsible for the management of several TDA grants including the Texas Israel Exchange Program, the Urban School Agricultural Grant Program, the Surplus Food Grant Program, Enology/Viticulture Research Grants, the Leon River Restoration Project Grant and the Feral Hog Damage Abatement Program^[8]
• Marketing and Promotion—Works to increase the sales of both raw and processed Texas agricultural commodities by promoting Texas food, fiber, wine, livestock, horticulture and forestry products under the GO TEXAN campaign^[9]
• Pesticide Programs—TDA is designated as the state’s lead agency in the regulation of pesticide use and application. The division is responsible for licensing and training pesticide applicators, overseeing worker protection, registering pesticides for sale in the state and working to minimize unnecessary impacts to agriculture while enhancing protection of endangered and threatened species as mandated by the federal law^[10]
• Regulatory Programs—TDA has a strong consumer protection program, which includes overseeing items like grocery store scales, egg quality, nursery products and gasoline pumps. TDA regularly works with producers to ensure they receive quality seed. This division also ensures the accuracy of weights and measures and protects against the movement of harmful pests into Texas^[11]
• Rural Economic Development—Assists rural communities and businesses to create and retain jobs through business development and community assistance, and through the GO TEXAN Rural Community Program, the division promotes agricultural diversification, small town revitalization and rural tourism^[12]

References

Texas Department of Agriculture

External links

• Texas Department of Agriculture

Texas state agencies
Executive	Dept. of Agriculture Alcoholic Beverage Commission Animal Health Commission Dept. of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services Attorney General School for the Blind and Visually Impaired Brazos River Authority State Cemetery Comptroller of Public Accounts School for the Deaf Board of Dental Examiners Commission on Environmental Quality Education Agency Employees Retirement System Ethics Commission Facilities Commission Dept. of Family and Protective Services Film Commission Forest Service Office of the Governor Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority Health and Human Services Commission Dept. of State Health Services Higher Education Coordinating Board Historical Commission Dept. of Housing and Community Affairs Dept. of Information Resources Dept. of Insurance Commission on Jail Standards General Land Office Library and Archives Commission Dept. of Licensing and Regulation Lottery Commission Lower Colorado River Authority Dept. of Motor Vehicles Dept. of Parks and Wildlife Preservation Board Dept. of Public Safety Railroad Commission Real Estate Commission Residential Construction Commission Soil and Water Conservation Board State Fair Teacher Retirement System Texas A&M University System Dept. of Transportation Trinity River Authority University of Houston System University of North Texas System University of Texas System Texas State University System Texas Tech University System Workforce Commission Juvenile Justice Department
Legislative	House of Representatives Senate
Judicial	Courts of Appeals Court of Criminal Appeals Dept. of Criminal Justice State Bar Supreme Court

Current statewide political officials of Texas
U.S. Senators	John Cornyn Ted Cruz
State government	Greg Abbott, Governor Dan Patrick, Lieutenant Governor & President of the Senate Carlos Cascos, Secretary of State (appointed) Ken Paxton, Attorney General Glenn Hegar, Comptroller (Treasurer equivalent) George P. Bush, Land Commissioner Sid Miller, Agriculture Commissioner Christi Craddick, Ryan Sitton, David J. Porter (to be succeeded by Wayne Christian), Railroad Commissioners
Senate	Juan Hinojosa, President pro tempore In the Texas Senate, there are no majority or minority leaders.
House	Joe Straus, Speaker Dennis Bonnen, Speaker pro tempore In the Texas House, there are no majority or minority leaders.
Supreme Court (civil)	Nathan Hecht, Chief Justice Don Willett Debra Lehrmann John P. Devine Paul W. Green Jeff Brown Jeffrey S. Boyd Phil Johnson Eva Guzman
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals	Sharon Keller, Presiding Justice Lawrence E. Meyers (to be replaced by Mary Lou Keel) Bert Richardson Kevin Patrick Yeary Cheryl Johnson (to be replaced by Scott Walker) Michael Keasler Barbara Hervey Elsa Alcala David Newell