Willis to head Risk Management Agency
February 25, 2013 | 07:48 PM
Brandon Willis, who has been serving as the acting administrator of the Risk Management Agency, was appointed as administrator today, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced.
Before this appointment, Willis served as senior adviser to Vilsack on Title I Commodity programs, farm legislation matters and disaster assistance.
The Obama administration first appointed him at USDA in August 2009 as deputy administrator of farm programs for USDA’s Farm Service Agency. In that position, he oversaw all FSA programs under the Production Emergencies and Compliance Division, Conservation and Environmental Programs Division, and Price Support Division.
Before joining FSA, Willis had served as the agriculture legislative assistant for Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., since 2006.
Willis earned his bachelor’s degree in crop and soil science from Utah State University and his law degree from the University of Wyoming. In 2009, he completed his master's degree in agricultural law from the University of Arkansas and worked as a graduate assistant at the National Agricultural Law Center. He grew up on a third-generation sheep ranch in northern Utah and managed his family's raspberry farm, Bursting Berries.
