Government Affairs Insights on Floral

September 19, 2025

Senate Finally Confirms More USDA Nominees

On September 18, the full Senate confirmed a nominations package featuring 48 sub-Cabinet nominees, including three U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) undersecretaries. The confirmed slate of political nominees included Dudley Hoskins as Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Affairs (MRP); Dr. Scott Hutchins as Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics (REE); and Richard Fordyce as Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC). All three served at USDA during the first Trump Administration and will now join Secretary Brooke Rollins and Deputy Secretary Stephen Vaden and the other confirmed political appointees down at the Department in the coming weeks.

House Agriculture Holds Specialty Crop Hearing

On September 16, the House Committee on Agriculture held a hearing to examine the state of the specialty crop industry. During the hearing, Republicans and Democrats agreed on the critical importance of supporting specialty crop producers and addressed issues related to crop insurance shortfalls, unfavorable market conditions, and existing programs designed to be benefit farmers. Members also discussed the upcoming “skinny” farm bill and the recent One Big Beautiful Bill Act passage and its impact on the agricultural sector. Republicans focused on increasing federal investment, improving research, expanding market access, and reforming labor and regulatory policies to enhance industry competitiveness. Democrats emphasized the need for stable funding, improved crop insurance specifically for the specialty crop industry, expanded nutrition and local food programs, and agricultural labor reforms to better support producers and consumers. Other topics discussed included the impact of tariffs, climate variability, trade policy, mechanization, workforce shortages and H-2A visas, Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) , and the need for better coordination among federal, state, and local agencies. You can watch the full hearing and find the list of witnesses here.

New Developments Regarding Trump Administration's Tariff Authority and Product Exemptions

On September 5, President Trump signed an executive order that updated the list of products that may qualify for tariff exemptions. On the list were several kinds of flowers, such as roses, carnations, chrysanthemums, alstroemeria and lilies, to name a few (see full list here). This order indicates that the Trump Administration may be more willing to allow exemptions for certain goods that the U.S. market is unable to replicate, such as cut flowers. This announcement comes after a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal District ruling that the Trump Administration exceeded its authority while imposing sweeping tariffs across numerous international trading partners, under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), on August 29. While the decision upheld a previous ruling by the Court of International Trade (CIT) against the Administration’s tariffs, it rejected the CIT’s decision to immediately retract already in place tariffs. This will give the Administration the opportunity to appeal the Supreme Court’s decision. The decision was based on findings that IEEPA does not specifically grant the president the ability to levy tariffs as taxation authority lies with the “power of the purse”, under Congress. While the White House has commented in defense of its tariffs and the Administration’s broader trade initiatives, there has been no specific action against this decision taken thus far.

USDA Extends Public Comment Period for Reorganization to September 30

On September 1, it was reported that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) extended the public comment period for its planned reorganization, which was originally announced July 24. The deadline for public comment was moved to September 30, 2025, from the original deadline of August 31, 2025. While this announcement was quietly made through an update to the USDA website, agency spokespersons have noted that the extension is to ensure that everyone interested in providing feedback is able. This extension follows significant pressure from lawmakers to extend the comment period to at least 60 days for ample stakeholder engagement. Interested stakeholders can submit comments over email to reorganization@usda.gov.

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