Agriculture
I am proud to operate my family’s fourth-generation cattle farm in Salem, MO and be a part of the great agricultural tradition of Southeast Missouri. Agriculture is the economic foundation of the Eighth District of Missouri. We raise and grow everything from cattle, chickens and hogs to corn, rice, cotton and soybeans. I am dedicated to advancing policies that will stimulate agriculture and economic growth in Missouri and across the country.
President Obama’s restrictive EPA regulations are out of touch with the needs of our farmers. The agriculture community is currently burdened with excessive paperwork and unnecessary legislation. I am committed to limiting the EPA’s control over farmers and their land and agricultural practices.
More on Agriculture
Dec 17, 2015
Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today Congressman Smith voted to keep a $622 billion tax increase from hitting American families. One of the most important provisions for farmers and small business owners in the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act is providing tax relief for equipment and property purchases through Section 179 of the tax code. The PATH Act would make permanent Section 179 expensing, allowing for an immediate deduction on equipment purchases for farmers and small business owners.
Oct 30, 2015
Weekly Capitol Report
Since you sent me to Washington, I have looked carefully at each piece of legislation that was brought for a vote. Each time, I look at how it would impact the hardworking folks of southeast and southern Missouri. Next, I look to see if the legislation was crafted fairly, and if it upholds the traditions and values of our area. Given the rushed non-transparent process around this week's budget bill, I wasn't surprised when I opened page one and found a bad deal for hardworking taxpayers and farmers. The only reasonable option was to vote no.
Aug 31, 2015
In The News
Government regulations and keeping the next generation interested in agriculture were two of the most discussed topics when U.S. Rep. Jason Smith visited a beef cattle farm just outside of Jackson on Monday.
Paul "Butch" Meier of Butch's Angus is a fourth-generation farmer who said he hopes his sons and grandchildren carry the farm through the next few generations.
"I've lived on this tract of land all my life," he told the congressman and the small group of farmers gathered Monday.
Aug 21, 2015
Weekly Capitol Report
Twenty stops. 15 counties. 5 days. That’s the tally for the 3rd Annual District-Wide Farm Tour so far, a yearly trip to see different sectors of the agriculture industry in every corner of our district. The Farm Tour kicked off on Monday and will travel to each of the 30 counties in Missouri’s Eighth Congressional District before it is finished.
Aug 20, 2015
In The News
SEDALIA, Mo. (AP) — Missouri's Republican U.S. Rep. Jason Smith says he thinks the federal Environmental Protection Agency should be eliminated.
Smith's remarks came during a Missouri Farm Bureau presentation Thursday at the Missouri State Fair on a new rule on streams, tributaries and wetlands.
The EPA says the federal rule clarifies but doesn't expand which smaller bodies of water should be protected from development and pollution.
Aug 20, 2015
Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Thursday, Congressman Jason Smith called for elimination of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a federal agency that accidentally dumped three million gallons of toxic waste into a river system in Colorado earlier this month.
The call came during a Missouri Farm Bureau press conference at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia.