Chairman Pat Roberts announced the hiring of eight additional staff members for the Senate Agriculture Committee, including Anne Hazlett as chief counsel and Matt Erickson as chief economist. Hazlett was the agriculture director in Indiana before becoming chief counsel for Republicans on the Agriculture Committee in 2009. For the past four years, Erickson was an economist for the American Farm Bureau Federation, the largest U.S. farm group.
Joining Hazlett on the committee’s legal team are DaNita Murray as senior counsel, Andy Rezendes as investigative counsel and Norwood Thornton as counsel. Murray is a former counsel for the House Agriculture Committee, and Rezendes was counsel on the investigative team of the House Government Reform Committee. Thornton will focus on the CFTC and derivatives regulation. Also hired were Maddy Connor as legislative correspondent, Chelsie Keys as livestock and food safety staff worker and Anthony Seiler as legislative correspondent.