By Tony Webster / via Wikimedia Commons image
The Trump administration is proposing steep cuts to USDA programs and staff, including plans to shut down or consolidate many local Farm Service Agency (FSA) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) offices, according to internal budget documents from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
The fiscal year 2026 proposal, outlined in a passback document obtained by reporters, would slash funding for agricultural research, conservation programs, and rural development. Nearly all program areas face reductions, with OMB calling the changes “difficult decisions” needed to meet proposed spending limits.
One major shift: USDA has been directed to prepare plans to consolidate its local, county-level offices into larger, state-level committees that would oversee FSA, NRCS, and Rural Development operations. These offices, which many farmers depend on for direct support, could see major changes or disappear altogether.
USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins recently described these agencies, along with the Risk Management Agency, as the department’s most “farmer-facing” programs, highlighting their importance to daily farm operations.