Chair of the USDA Agricultural Statistics Board Lance Honig is uncertain if the July Cattle inventory report will return in 2025. The USDA is currently running under a Continuing Resolution. This would preclude the Agricultural Statistics Board from producing a report that was not produced during the previous year. The Continuing Resolution requires the agency to do the same as it did last year.

Restoring the report ultimately comes down to Congressional appropriations. Honig says the Agricultural Statistics Board is in the business of producing statistics and it would prefer to provide detailed data, including the July Cattle Inventory Report and the cotton objective yield that was cut last year.

Honig explained that the July 2024 Cattle inventory report decision came down to timing. The FY24 budget appropriation was not received until April. Decisions had to be made on where to absorb cost savings. The Agricultural Statistics Board is only allowed to spend what is appropriated.

Read more on the uncertainty surrounding the 2025 July Cattle Inventory report here.