The Maryland Department of Agriculture and members of the Maryland Agricultural Commission told the Education, Energy, and the Environment Committee that Senate Bill 240 would modernize the Agricultural Commission's membership to reflect changes in the industry.

Secretary Kevin Attucks said the bill is intended to make advisory bodies "more efficient and also more representative of the actual agriculture that we have on the ground." Rachel Jones of MDA described specific adjustments the commission recommended after a 2024 strategic planning process: expanding the agritourism seat to value‑added agriculture; changing a horse breeding seat to represent the broader equine industry; clarifying horticulture to focus on fruit production paired with a vegetable seat; and modifying the nursery seat to include landscape and greenhouse concerns.

The commission and department would remove duplicate seats (for example, second seats for dairy and poultry), eliminate the tobacco grower seat given reduced tobacco production, and add seats for controlled environment agriculture (indoor growing), urban and small farmers, historically underserved farmers, young farmers, veteran farmers, and new/beginning farmers. The bill would absorb the Young Farmers Advisory Board into a young farmer committee within the Agricultural Commission; MDA sought a friendly amendment to adjust statutory cross‑references so a commission young‑farmer representative would serve on the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation board.

Harrison Palmer, executive secretary of the Agricultural Commission, and Kelly Lewis, commission chair and general manager at Rupert Nurseries, said the changes grew from a unanimous strategic plan adopted by the commission and aimed to make the body more representative. Both witnesses and department staff asked the committee for a favorable report.

The transcript records no formal committee vote; testimony was supportive with a committee request to consider a technical amendment to cross‑referencing language.