This past fall the U.S. government was shutdown for the longest period in history, with a temporary reprieve reached to re-open the government until the end of this month (30 January). Regardless of what happens, USDA was funded for the year under the compromise package, thus keeping the agency open should all other efforts fail in two weeks. Before leaving Washington for a weeklong recess next week, the Senate voted 82-15 to approve the “minibus” appropriations bill, which then passed the House last week 397-28. This “mini” version of an omnibus spending package includes the Energy and Water, Interior, and Commerce-Justice-Space spending bills. The minibus bill is in addition to three other bills — Agriculture...