Little Rock – U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., today said putting the economy back on the right track is her number one priority as Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry. Lincoln held her first field hearing as Committee Chairman today at the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service at the William J. Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock.

“Investing in our rural communities will boost our economy and spur new job creation,” Lincoln said. “With 48 percent of our state’s population living in rural areas, it is critical that this Committee be focused on providing our rural citizens with the tools they need to strengthen and grow their economies. I will use this Chairmanship to reverse the devastating effects our ailing economy has had on Arkansans.”

The hearing, titled “Revitalizing Rural America,” provided an opportunity for Arkansans to begin a new dialogue with the Senate Agriculture Committee and play a role in shaping the Committee’s agenda moving forward.

The Committee heard testimony from three panels, with the first focused on the importance of production agriculture to the rural economy and the impact recent flooding has had on this year’s crop. Last week, Lincoln introduced legislation that would provide timely disaster assistance to farmers affected by this and other weather-related disasters. A second panel focused on improving rural infrastructure, and the final panel discussed successful community and economic development initiatives.