
Welcome to the January 31, 2025 issue of Cotton News, a service provided by Plains Cotton Growers Inc. for the cotton industry in the Texas High Plains and beyond.
Get to Know Ag’s Champions in Congress, Part 3

Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) – Chair of the Senate Ag Appropriations Subcommittee
Editor’s Note: We are introducing a short series of articles in the next few issues of Cotton News detailing the Representatives and Senators serving on the House Agriculture Committee, the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, and the House Ag Appropriations and Senate Ag Appropriations Subcommittees.
This issue will feature the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food and Drug Administration Appropriations. This subcommittee will be referred to as “Senate Ag Appropriations” through the rest of the article.
This subcommittee is tasked with writing legislation that allocates federal funds to government agencies, departments and organizations for the agriculture industry.
Part 3: Senate Ag Appropriations

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) – Ranking Member of the Senate Ag Appropriations Subcommittee
Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND), Senate Ag Appropriations Chair
- Elected to the U.S. Senate in 2011
- Served 10 years as North Dakota Governor
- Member of the House Ag Committee and played a crucial role in crafting and passing the 2014 Farm Bill
- Vice President of First Western Bank from 1986-2000
- President and CEO of the Bank of North Dakota from 1993-2000
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Senate Ag Appropriations Ranking Member
- Elected to the U.S. Senate in 2009
- Former governor of New Hampshire
- Served in the New Hampshire Senate
- One of 12 Senate Democrats to vote for the Laken Riley Act
Texas State Support Projects Win Big at 2025 Beltwide Cotton Conferences

Megan Mills Singletary and Matthew Cole Woodard
We’re excited to announce that the following students took home banners at the 2025 Beltwide Cotton Conferences for their projects, which are partially funded by Cotton Incorporated’s State Support Program (Texas State Support).
Megan Mills Singletary — “Strategies for Controlling Dicamba-Resistant Palmer Amaranth in Texas and Tennessee”
First Place — Ph.D. oral presentation competition, Weed Science Conference
Project Funded by USDA NIFA and the Texas State Support Committee
Matthew Cole Woolard — “Does adjuvant selection impact AxantTM Flex cotton response when tank-mixed with topramezone and Liberty ULTRA?”
First Place — Ph.D. poster presentation competition, Weed Science Conference
Funded by BASF Corporation and the Texas State Support Committee
2024 Cotton Quality Report
Lamesa’s average daily number of cotton samples received this week is 624. The office is currently 99% complete in the classing of their season estimate of samples.
Lubbock’s average daily number of cotton samples received this week is 5,060. The office is 99% complete in the classing of their season estimate of samples.
Reminder for Gins:
If gins are submitting samples for the Four Bale Module Averaging pilot program, the submitted modules must be designated with a R and they must be in multiples of 4. (4, 8, 12, 16 up to 48).