Hutchins nominated to lead USDA research, education, economics

President Donald Trump has nominated several individuals to high-ranking posts at the Agriculture Department, including Scott Hutchins to be the new undersecretary of agriculture for research, education, and economics and Tyler Clarkson to be the department’s top lawyer.

Hutchins served in the first Trump administration as deputy undersecretary for the REE mission area, which includes the Agricultural Research Service, Economic Research Service, National Agricultural Statistics Service, National Institute of Food and Agriculture and Office of the Chief Scientist.

“Together these agencies have unique federal leadership responsibility to advance agriculture research, extension and education,” according to Hutchins’ USDA biography during his previous term. 

He was at USDA from January 2019 to January 2021 and has been an independent consultant since, according to his LinkedIn profile. While at USDA, he helped lead the relocation of ERS and NIFA to Kansas City.

Hutchins most recently supported the Indiana Soybean Alliance and the Indiana Corn Marketing Council’s implementation of sustainability and value creation objectives. In a contract position, he worked with the organizations' leadership to guide the research processes and reach discovery goals. 

A board-certified entomologist, Hutchins has been an adjunct professor of entomology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln since 1997. He served as a research and development leader at Dow Agrosciences (later Corteva Agriscience) from 1987 to 2018. 

Clarkson, who would be the new general counsel at USDA, is vice president and deputy general counsel at Gingko Bioworks, where he has worked since April 2021. He was at USDA for nine months at the end of the first Trump administration, serving as deputy general counsel and principal deputy GC, according to his LinkedIn profile.

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Gingko Bioworks is a biotech company that calls itself “the leading horizontal platform for cell programming, providing flexible, end-to-end services that solve challenges for organizations across diverse markets, from food and agriculture to pharmaceuticals to industrial and specialty chemicals.” In 2022, it partnered with Bayer to advance the development of biological solutions in agriculture, including nitrogen-fixing bacteria.

Trump also has nominated Sean Donahue to be general counsel at EPA. Donahue is currently principal deputy general counsel at the agency. Others nominated for EPA include Jessica Kramer to be assistant administrator for water and Aaron Szabo to be assistant administrator for air and radiation.

Since January 2022, Kramer has been a senior policy adviser and counsel at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck in Washington. As a lobbyist, she has represented the American Water Works Association, the National Association of Clean Water Agencies, the National Rural Water Association, and the Sturgeon Industry Alliance of America, among other clients.

Szabo has been a lobbyist for the American Petroleum Institute and American Chemistry Council, among others.

In addition, Trump nominated former Wyoming Game and Fish chief Brian Nesvik to be director of the Fish and Wildlife Service and Kathleen Sgamma, head of the Western Energy Alliance, to lead the Bureau of Land Management.

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