of
Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman’s Remarks
at The Dedication Ceremony And Tour of The
San Jose Mission Housing Development With
Florida Governor Jeb Bush And Rep. Adam Putnam
Dover, Florida
October 15, 2003

SECRETARY VENEMAN: Well, thank you very much. Good afternoon, and I truly appreciate the opportunity to visit this wonderful project and beautiful housing.

Governor Bush, thank you for that kind introduction. It's really, really an honor to be here today. I know not only from what you just said, but from the things you have been doing over your term as governor, that you are absolutely committed to improving the living conditions for farm workers, and this project would not have been possible without your leadership.

I am also very pleased to be here with Congressman Putnam, who sits on the Agriculture Committee. That's an important committee to me.

[Applause.]

SECRETARY VENEMAN: And I know, too, that he has also been very committed to this project.

I also want to recognize Chuck Clemons, who is over here somewhere. He is our USDA Rural Development Director here in Florida and has helped, along with his team, to oversee this project.

We have two students sitting right down here--Anthony Ramos and Brittney Lee. Stand up so everybody can see you. They are both students at the University of Florida, and we are very pleased to have them with us today. I have a little program called Leaders of Tomorrow, and when I go around to various states and visit places like this, I like to have some students join me for the day and have the opportunity to see a Cabinet member firsthand. So we are delighted that they have come from the University of Florida today to be with us.

Thank you.

[Applause.]

SECRETARY VENEMAN: "I also want to thank all of the USDA's funding partners who are here with us today. This is truly a partnership project, as others have talked about, and that's what's made it so successful, but especially I want to thank Bishop Lynch of Catholic Charities who are the sponsors of this project.

"The President had just these kinds of effort in mind when two years ago he began his faith-based and community initiatives project. At that time, he said, "Compassion is the work of a nation, not just a government. It is more than the calling of politicians; it is the calling of citizens." And this has been an important initiative in USDA and throughout all of the Bush administration. So thank you very much for what you're doing here.

"The President is committed to investing in rural America. We are helping businesses compete and diversify, building vital infrastructure, such as water systems, telecommunications systems and helping to provide needed health care.

"In addition, we are committed to providing affordable housing. As part of our efforts, we are investing in housing facilities to immigrant and seasonal farm workers. The people who labor in the fields across America make it possible for us to provide an abundant source of food for our country and, indeed, for people all around the world. They have dedicated their lives and made many sacrifices, and we are grateful for the contributions they have made to our nation and to our economy.

"Unfortunately, even in the 21st century, far too many of them live in substandard conditions. The San Jose Mission will help remedy that problem by making more farm labor housing options. USDA provided three-quarters of a million dollars to help make this facility a reality. It's part of a three-part project that's going on here in Florida.

"Just a little over two years ago, I had the privilege of visiting Immokalee, Florida, to join state and local officials in a groundbreaking for one of the other parts of this project. For that project, which is a 192-bed facility, USDA provided $3.2 million.

"The third part of this project is a facility that will house 124 workers in Ruskin, in Hillsborough County, and for that, USDA will provide $1.63 million. Those projects are scheduled to be completed by the end of next year.

"This project that we are dedicating today is an 80-unit apartment complex for migrant and seasonal farm worker families. The housing being built at this location demonstrates what can be accomplished when government, business, and nonprofit organizations work toward a common goal. We are seeing successful partnerships all across the country as we work to invest in rural America.

"Today, is the final day of Hispanic Heritage Month. During this month, I have traveled in places around the country to highlight the programs that we have at USDA and how they're helping communities that have high populations of Hispanic Americans.

"Last week, I visited the Colonias in Anthony, New Mexico, and saw extraordinary results from some of these programs similar to what we're seeing here. In that project, federal, state and local partners worked together to provide single-family homes, multi-family housing and farm worker housing.

"Providing families needed resources such as affordable housing is an important part of our mission at USDA, but we also provide a whole range of other programs, not the least of which is administering most of the nutrition programs that the federal government has, including the food stamp program, the school lunch and school breakfast programs, and the Women, Infants and Children program. And all of these are important programs that help people in need.

"President Bush is committed to ensuring that those who are eligible for nutrition assistance, such as food stamps, are provided the available benefits, and he has made it a priority to restore eligibility for legal immigrants to participate in the food stamp program.

"It is an important step in our ongoing efforts to improve access for low-income households, providing fairness and equity for legal immigrants.

"Again, Governor Bush, it's an honor to be with you today. It is a great honor for me to be in the State of Florida, and it's a pleasure to highlight this outstanding example of what can be done when we all work together. Enhancing the livelihoods of farm worker families is a priority for us.

"Thank you, and congratulations to all of you who have worked so hard to make this project a reality.

"Thank you very much."

[Applause.]

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