ture is not only the economic engine of our rural communities, it also provides jobs and opportunities across the United States. More than two million farmers and ranchers work hard each day to provide our nation with a safe, abundant, and affordable food supply. However, one of the biggest obstacles facing agriculture, especially the ranching industry, is the regulatory overreach of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
•  All too often, this EPA engages in "sue and settle" agreements with environmental extremist groups that negatively impact production agriculture. Family farmers and ranchers in South Dakota and across the country endure criticism and are forced into costly legal battles thanks to environmental organizations who know little to nothing about agriculture or rural America. What they do know is litigation and intimidation. Rather than fighting to protect agriculture producers, the EPA will settle with the environmental groups, which only furthers EPA's aggressive regulatory agenda.
• Most recently, the EPA provided the environmental groups Earth Justice, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and the environmental arm of the Pew

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