This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations .(May 2016) |
John R. Block | |
---|---|
21st United States Secretary of Agriculture | |
In office January 23, 1981 –February 14, 1986 | |
President | Ronald Reagan |
Preceded by | Robert Bergland |
Succeeded by | Richard E. Lyng |
Illinois Director of Agriculture | |
In office February 3,1977 –January 22,1981 | |
Governor | James R. Thompson |
Preceded by | Pud Williams |
Succeeded by | Larry Werries |
Personal details | |
Born | Galesburg,Illinois,U.S. | February 15,1935
Political party | Republican |
Spouse | Susan Rathje "Sue" Block |
Children | Hans Block Cynthia Block Christine Block |
Alma mater | U.S. Military Academy |
Military service | |
Branch/service | United States Army |
Unit | 101st Airborne |
John Rusling Block (born February 15,1935) is a former U.S. secretary of agriculture,during the Reagan administration. He later became a lobbyist.
Block was born in Galesburg,Illinois,on February 15,1935. Of German descent,Block was the son of Julius Judd Block and Madeline (née Maddy) Block. He came from a strongly rural background where the home had no electricity. He graduated from West Point in 1957 and served in 101st Airborne. After that,he became successful in agribusiness.
Block was a Republican whose agriculture successes formed the basis for his position as the Illinois Director of Agriculture. This led to him becoming the secretary of agriculture in President Ronald Reagan's administration. He was involved in the 1985 Farm Bill Act.
Block was a Secretary of Agriculture,when more farmers lost their farms than at any time since the Great Depression of the 1930s.[ citation needed ] During his term as Secretary,a Federal court judge ruled in a due process decision,Coleman vs. Block,663 FSupp 1315,1332 (D.N.D. 1987),that the U.S. Department of Agriculture ("USDA") and Farmers Home Administration ("FmHA") were not giving farmers enough notice of alternative debt restructuring options. The Court ordered the USDA and FmHA to amend the forms issued to farmers. The decision eventually led to restructuring and reorganization of many farm debts. During the U.S. government's appeal of the decision,Congress passed the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987,Pub. L. No. 100-233,101 Stat. 1568 (1988). Title VI of the Act made extensive changes in the statutory provisions which had formed the background for the Coleman litigation,the changes being designed to carry out the intent of the Coleman decisions.
In June 1981,Secretary Block invited agricultural and educational leaders willing to work cooperatively toward the common goal of educating the public about the role of agriculture to a workshop in Washington,DC. The resulting task force recommended that the U.S. Department of Agriculture help coordinate local and state Agriculture in the Classroom efforts. The Declaration of Principle was announced by Secretary of Agriculture John Block with a fanfare on Ag Day,March 21,1983. The Declaration of Principle spelled out the purpose of the Agriculture in the Classroom program and featured the signatures of all seven living former Secretaries of Agriculture. There are now Agriculture in the Classroom programs in every state and many U.S. Territories. Canada,with assistance from USDA,developed an Agriculture in the Classroom program in every Province as well as a national organization. Countries around the world are interested in Agriculture in the Classroom because they have experienced the same needs in agricultural education.
Since then he has been an executive at John Deere and is President of Food Distributors International. In 1992,he won the Horatio Alger Award. He has been the active in global food programs as well.
In 2004,he joined the Board of Directors of "Digital Angel",which is more of an Internet company. He has also served on the Board of Directors of Friends of the World Food Program (currently known as World Food Program USA),a non-profit dedicated to supporting the UN World Food Program and its efforts to end global hunger. He is a Senior Policy Adviser at Olsson Frank Weeda Terman Bode Matz,a Washington law and lobbying firm that specializes in representing interests before the USDA and related federal agencies. Since 2008,he has served on the Board of Directors for Aemetis.
He married Susan Rathje "Sue" Block,a cousin of famed Chicago banker Frank C. Rathje. He and Susan had one son and two daughters:Hans,Cynthia and Christine. He was a very large farmer outside of Knoxville,Illinois and his children attended public school in Knoxville,Illinois. He has a daughter,Savannah,with his second wife and they live in Dunn Loring,Virginia.
The United States Secretary of Agriculture is the head of the United States Department of Agriculture. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other governments.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and production, works to assure food safety, protects natural resources, fosters rural communities and works to end hunger in the United States and internationally. It is headed by the secretary of agriculture, who reports directly to the president of the United States and is a member of the president's Cabinet. The current secretary is Tom Vilsack, who has served since February 24, 2021.
The Farm Service Agency (FSA) is the United States Department of Agriculture agency that was formed by merging the farm loan portfolio and staff of the Farmers Home Administration (FmHA) and the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS). The Farm Service Agency implements agricultural policy, administers credit and loan programs, and manages conservation, commodity, disaster, and farm marketing programs through a national network of offices. The Administrator of FSA reports to the Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm Production and Conservation. The current administrator is Zach Ducheneaux. The FSA of each state is led by a politically appointed State Executive Director (SED).
The Economic Research Service (ERS) is a component of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and a principal agency of the Federal Statistical System of the United States. It provides information and research on agriculture and economics.
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Pigford v. Glickman (1999) was a class action lawsuit against the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), alleging that it had racially discriminated against African-American farmers in its allocation of farm loans and assistance from 1981 to 1996. The lawsuit was settled on April 14, 1999, by Judge Paul L. Friedman of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. To date, almost $1 billion US dollars have been paid or credited to fewer than 20,000 farmers under the settlement's consent decree, under what is reportedly the largest civil rights settlement until that point. Due to delaying tactics by U.S. government officials, more than 70,000 farmers were treated as filing late and thus did not have their claims heard. The 2008 Farm Bill provided for additional claims to be heard. In December 2010, Congress appropriated $1.2 billion for what is called "Pigford II," settlement for the second part of the case.
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Frank Rathje was a Chicago banker who served as president of the American Bankers Association and the Illinois Bankers' Association during World War II. He founded the Mutual National Bank of Chicago and the Chicago City Bank and Trust Company.
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