Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today released the following statement after receiving his committee assignments for the 113th session of Congress (2013-2014). Thune was selected to continue serving on the following committees: Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry; Commerce, Science, and Transportation; and Finance. Members of these committees voted earlier today to select ranking members, and the full Republican conference will ratify those selections. Thune was elected as ranking member, or the senior most Republican, on the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee for the 113th Congress. Thune will continue to serve in Republican leadership as Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference.
"Continuing to serve South Dakota in the United States Senate is the highest opportunity afforded to me,” said Thune. “Over the past eight years I have diligently worked to be a strong voice for South Dakota and to represent the values and interests of our state and its residents both through my committee assignments and on the Senate floor. I look forward to the opportunity to continue serving on these committees and am eager to tackle the challenges ahead with fair-minded, common-sense solutions.”
Thune Committee Assignments for 113th Congress:
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry
The Senate Agriculture Committee has oversight over matters relating to: U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) activities including farm payments, crop insurance, conservation programs, and livestock marketing rules; the Rural Utilities Service and Rural Development, which carry out important programs relating to rural energy development, rural business financing, and rural health care services; nutrition programs including the National School Lunch Program, the Women, Infants and Children program, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly known as food stamps); and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which oversees all futures markets.
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation has jurisdiction with matters relating to: Coast Guard; communications; highway safety; inland waterways; interstate commerce; marine and ocean navigation safety and transportation; marine fisheries; Merchant Marine and navigation; nonmilitary aeronautical and space sciences; oceans, weather and atmospheric activities; regulation of consumer products and services; regulation of interstate common carriers, including railroads, busses, trucks, vessels, pipelines, and civil aviation; science, engineering, and technology research and development and policy; sports; and transportation.
The Senate Committee on Finance has jurisdiction with matters relating to: taxation and other revenue measures generally; bonded debt of the United States; customs, collection districts and ports of entry and delivery; reciprocal trade agreements; tariff and import quotas; the transportation of dutiable goods; deposit of public moneys; general revenue sharing; health programs under the Social Security Act, including Medicare, Medicaid, and other health and human services programs financed by a specific tax or trust fund; and Social Security.