1. United States
2. Texas
3. Letter

As a Texas resident, I am furious that Congress and this administration chose to weaken programs responsible for protecting American agriculture while experts were warning about the northward spread of New World screwworm. Texas has one of the largest and most important cattle industries in the nation. I cannot understand why you would allow one of our state’s strongest economic drivers to be placed at risk. Ranching supports jobs, local businesses, rural communities, and families across Texas. Protecting that industry should be a priority for every elected official who claims to represent Texans. The United States spent decades eradicating this devastating livestock parasite. Yet after cuts to monitoring and agricultural programs, and amid significant staffing losses at USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, screwworm has now returned to Texas for the first time in generations. This is not an abstract policy debate. It affects ranchers, family farms, rural communities, and every American who buys food. Beef prices were already at record levels due to tight cattle supplies. Now the industry faces an additional threat that could further disrupt production and increase costs for consumers. The people who raise our food deserve better than political games and shortsighted budget cuts. Agricultural biosecurity is not wasteful spending. It is a core government responsibility that protects jobs, food supplies, and rural economies. As a Texan, I expect my elected representatives to defend the industries that keep our state strong. Instead, we are watching preventable risks grow while the very programs designed to stop them are weakened. If these decisions contribute to higher costs, lost livestock, and struggling family ranches, voters will remember. I urge you to support full funding for livestock disease monitoring, USDA inspection programs, and screwworm eradication efforts before this problem grows even larger. Texas ranchers, Texas families, and Texas consumers deserve better.