U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln

Helena native Blanche Lincoln contributed to the agriculture industry in rural Arkansas and across the nation, serving in the United States House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. 

She helped broker passage of the 2008 farm bill, including stopping an amendment regarding payment limitations that would have reduced the safety net for Arkansas farmers. She also led implementation of the bill after being named chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry. She was the first Arkansan and first woman to chair the Committee on Agriculture. 

As the youngest woman ever elected to the Senate, Lincoln worked for emergency disaster funding for farmers suffering losses due to natural disasters and led efforts to strengthen conservation programs within the farm bill. She also continued Senator Dale Bumpers work to secure funding for the Grand Prairie and Bayou Meto Irrigation projects in Arkansas.

In 2010, Lincoln worked to amend the IRS code by raising the estate tax exemption for family-owned farms and ranches. She also led efforts to reauthorize the federal child nutrition program without adding to the federal deficit.