Equity at USDA

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National flag of the USA, in front of US Department of Agriculture in Washington D.C.

USDA can only succeed in its mission to help America thrive—and can only live up to President Lincoln's description of it as the "People's Department"—if it ensures that the Americans who need its services most receive them. Equity is not an add-on or extra; it is central to the Department’s mission (PDF, 9.6 MB):

"To serve all Americans by providing effective, innovative, science-based public policy leadership in agriculture, food and nutrition, natural resource protection and management, rural development, and related issues with a commitment to deliverable equitable and climate-smart opportunities that inspire and help America thrive."

Breaking Equity News and Events

USDA Releases Language Access Plan (November 15, 2023)

Two Year Anniversary of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law at USDA (Nov. 15, 2023)

Press Release: FACT SHEET: Year Two of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law at USDA
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law

USDA Invests More Than $1.2 Billion in Cooperatives for Opportunity and Equity (Nov. 9, 2023)

USDA Announces Resources to Empower Native American Young People (Nov. 6, 2023)

Press Release: At White House Tribal Youth Summit, USDA Announces New Resources to Empower Native American Young People

USDA invests in rural communities with over $5 billion during Biden’s Investing in Rural America Event Series (Nov. 1, 2023)

USDA’s Equity Commission concludes sixth public meeting to improve equity and eliminate barriers to programs and services (Oct. 27, 2023)

Press Release: USDA’s Equity Commission Concludes Sixth Public Meeting to Improve Equity and Eliminate Barriers to Programs and Services
Learn more about the Equity Commission: Advancing Equity at USDA
Read the Interim Report 2023 (PDF, 1.2 MB) & Spanish Interim Report 2023 (PDF, 1.3 MB)

Applications now open for the Discrimination Financial Assistance Program (Section 22007 of the Inflation Reduction Act)

Deadline extended: USDA Extends Application Deadline for Discrimination Financial Assistance Program to January 13 (Sept. 22, 2023)
Press Release: Financial Assistance Application Process Opens for USDA Farm Loan Borrowers Who Have Faced Discrimination (July 7, 2023)
Website and How to Apply: Discrimination Financial Assistance Program Home (22007apply.gov)
Protect Yourself From Potential Scams: Avoid Scams Related to USDA Financial Assistance for Farmers Facing Discrimination

Progress on funds for financially distressed borrowers (Section 22006 of the Inflation Reduction Act). Since the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law by President Biden in August 2022, USDA has provided approximately $1.15 billion in assistance to more than 20,000 distressed borrowers as a part of an ongoing effort to keep borrowers farming, remove obstacles that currently prevent many borrowers from returning to their land, and improve the way that USDA approaches borrowing and loan servicing in the long-term.

Additional assistance announced August 11, 2023 for qualifying guaranteed loan borrowers facing financial risk
FSA continues to accept and review individual direct loan borrower requests for cash flow-based assistance and assistance for borrowers who took extraordinary measures to avoid delinquency on their qualifying direct FLP loans
Prior assistance: October 2022 ($800 million) & May 2023 ($130 million)

USDA Agencies and Offices post 2023 Equity Action Plans

2023 Equity Action Plans
Deputy Secretary Torres-Small’s blogpost: USDA Mission Areas, Agencies, and Offices’ Equity Action Plans Are Making Progress

More USDA Equity News USDA Equity Accomplishments and Resources

Making Equity a Priority

EQUITY IS: the consistent and systematic treatment of all individuals in a fair, just, and impartial manner, including individuals who belong to communities that often have been denied such treatment, such as Black, Latino, Indigenous and Native American, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander persons and other persons of color; members of religious minorities; women and girls; LGBTQI+ persons; persons with disabilities; persons who live in rural areas; persons who live in United States Territories; persons otherwise adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality; and individuals who belong to multiple such communities.

IT MEANS RECOGNIZING: people’s frustrations run deep and are rooted in their own daily battles—to make ends meet, to maintain their land, to put food on their tables, and to give their children a shot at economic opportunity. Gaps in access to USDA programs challenge the very core of who we are as a Department. That’s why USDA is making equity a priority.

FROM CONCEPT TO ACTION: USDA has mobilized, department-wide, to remove barriers to access to our programs and services for all Americans, including ensuring USDA resources reach underserved communities and those with the most need. This page shows how.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack meeting with Native American Youth at the Department of Agriculture

^{Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack spent time with the 30 Students from Eastern and Western Tribes, Southeast Alaska, and Tuba City, Arizona planting vegetable seeds that are indigenous to North America.}

USDA Rural Development Under Secretary Xochitl Torres Small, left, during a visit to Siesta Shores and Falcon Lake

^{Agriculture Rural Development Under Secretary Xochitl Torres Small, left, announced that USDA is investing $102 million to expand access to housing and water infrastructure for socially disadvantaged rural people who live and work in 45 states and American Samoa, during a visit to Siesta Shores and Falcon Lake in Zapata Co., TX.}

USDA’s Farm Service Agency Administrator Zach Ducheneaux is presented with Sweet Grass by Kipp Family during honoring ceremony before meeting with members of the Blackfeet Extension Stockgrowers/PHLI/Ag Producers to listen to their concerns and discuss solution they are working on to help during a meeting

^{USDA Farm Service Agency Administrator Zach Ducheneaux is presented with Sweet Grass by Kipp Family during honoring ceremony before meeting with members of the Blackfeet Extension Stockgrowers/PHLI/Ag Producers to listen to their concerns and discuss solution they are working on to help during a meeting.}

U.S. Acting Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kevin Shea welcomes students from the National 4-H conference to the Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C.

^{Acting Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kevin Shea welcomes students from the National 4-H conference to the Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C.}

United States Department of Agriculture Deputy Under Secretary, Research, Education, and Economics Sanah Baig, U.S. Acting Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kevin Shea and U.S. National Institute of Food and Agriculture Director Dr. Dionne Toombs welcome students from the National 4-H conference to the Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C.

^{Agriculture Deputy Under Secretary, Research, Education, and Economics Sanah Baig, Acting Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kevin Shea and U.S. National Institute of Food and Agriculture Director Dr. Dionne Toombs welcome students from the National 4-H conference to the Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C.}

^{U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary for Health, Admiral Rachel Levine and Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services Deputy Under Secretary Stacy Dean visited Watkins ES in Washington, D.C. in recognition of National Nutrition Month.}

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Administrator Dr. Chavonda Jacobs-Young (center) visits with scientists and engineers participating in the “Meet the Scientists and Engineers Program,” during the 4th USA Science & Engineering Festival at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, in Washington D.C,

^{USDA Agricultural Research Service Administrator Dr. Chavonda Jacobs-Young (center) visits with scientists and engineers participating in the “Meet the Scientists and Engineers Program,” during the 4th USA Science and Engineering Festival at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, in Washington D.C.}

^{Agriculture Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt greets a vendor at the USDA Farmer's Market.}

United States Department of Agriculture Deputy Under Secretary, Research, Education, and Economics Sanah Baig meets with Max Finberg, Growing Hope Globally as USDA resumes hosting its annual Ramadan Iftar Celebration on Thursday, April 13, 2023 in Washington, D.C.

^{Agriculture Deputy Under Secretary, Research, Education, and Economics Sanah Baig meets with Max Finberg, Growing Hope Globally as USDA resumes hosting its annual Ramadan Iftar Celebration.}

Strategy for Impact

In response to Executive Order 13985, Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities through the Federal Government, and Executive Order 14091, Further Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities through the Federal Government, USDA has adopted department-wide strategies to advance equity:

Reduce barriers to USDA programs.
Partner with trusted technical assistance providers.
Direct USDA programs to those who need them the most.
Expand equitable access to USDA nutrition assistance programs.
Advance equity in federal procurement.
Uphold general federal trust and treaty responsibilities to Indian Tribes.
Commit unwaveringly to civil rights.
Operate with transparency and accountability.

Equity Accomplishments

For more on USDA’s equity strategy and progress since 2021, visit the Equity Accomplishments page and the Equity Action Plans page.

Stories

Through learned lenses

Equity at USDA

Breaking Equity News and Events

Making Equity a Priority

Strategy for Impact

Equity Accomplishments

Stories

Equity Commission: Shaping Change at USDA

Building a More Diverse USDA

Other Equity Resources

Explore Meaningful Work at USDA