WASHINGTON 鈥� When U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent labeled himself a "farmer" while testifying in front of a House committee, it raised some eyebrows.
The remark was in response to questions from Rep. Sanford Bishop, D-Georgia, about tariffs and the growing price of groceries since the Trump administration took office. Bishop held up news articles about difficulties for farmers in dealing with tariffs.
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"First of all, you may or may not know, I am a farmer," Bessent told
Bessent didn't elaborate on his situation as a "farmer." But in giving himself the title, Bessent appeared to be referring to an ownership stake he and his husband have in millions of dollars worth of North Dakota farmland 鈥� property of which he was supposed to have divested by the end of April 2025. He disclosed the ownership prior to his official nomination to his federal post.
Bessent has had a career most notably as a hedge fund manager. He is a former partner at Soros Fund Management and the founder of global macro investment firm Key Square Group. President Donald Trump officially nominated Bessent to serve as U.S. Treasury Secretary on Jan. 20, after having announced he had chosen Bessent for the post in November 2024.
Bessent, in an ethics agreement filed Jan. 9, 2025, wrote, "As soon as practicable but not later than 90 days after my confirmation, I will divest my interests" in 25 entities, which included High Plains Acres LLP, a landholding company in North Dakota. Bessent's ethics agreement and public disclosure were updated on May 5, 2025, to include several positions he had omitted from his disclosure.
According to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, Senate-confirmed candidates have a week after the 90-day mark to certify their compliance with the ethics agreement. Bessent was confirmed on Jan. 27, 2025, putting the 90-day mark at April 27, 2025, and making his filing deadline May 4. OGE then reviews the report and publishes it on its website for public view, and the documents typically are published 100 to 105 days after Senate confirmation. As of the morning of May 15, his Ethics Agreement Compliance Certification did not appear on the OGE website 鈥� 108 days past his confirmation.
High Plains Acres
High Plains Acres LLP鈥檚 annual report filed March 27 with the North Dakota Secretary of State鈥檚 office does not list Bessent as a managing partner or a partner; however, his husband, John Freeman, is listed alongside Scott Bradford, of Victoria, Minnesota, as managing partners. No update to that information appeared on the Secretary of State's website as of the morning of May 15, 2025.
High Plains Acres LLP's listed mailing address is a UPS Store in Bismarck. The registered agent for the company is Carrington, North Dakota, attorney Thomas Aljets. When contacted by Agweek on May 14, Aljects said he could not speak on behalf of Bradford or Freeman but did confirm that the information on record at the Secretary of State's Office would be the most up-to-date information available.
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Aljets did agree to give an Agweek reporter's contact information to Bradford. Bradford did not contact the reporter by the following day.
In his Public Financial Disclosure Report, Bessent listed High Plains Acres under "other assets and income." The disclosure indicated High Plains Acres owns farmland in Burleigh, Kidder, Eddy, Benson and Wells counties in North Dakota, worth between $5 million and $25 million and generating income of between $100,001 and $1 million. An endnote on the document indicated rent payments on the land "are through a revenue sharing agreement, which is tied to the price of the crops produced (corn and soybeans)." The disclosure said the company has two US Bank accounts, with values of "$100,001-$250,000," and "$500,0001-$1,000,000."
The annual report filed in March with the North Dakota Secretary of State's Office lists 5,662 acres that the company owns in North Dakota. That includes 160 acres in Benson County, 640 acres in Burleigh County, 1,120 acres in Eddy County, 1,772 acres in Kidder County and 1,650 acres in Wells County, which were listed in Bessent鈥檚 ethics disclosure, along with a 320-acre parcel in Stutsman County that was not listed in the disclosure.
The most recent average land prices for cropland in North Dakota, according to North Dakota State University Extension, puts the value of the holdings of the land listed in High Plains Acres' annual report at more than $18 million.
High Plains Acres was registered as an LLP in North Dakota in May 2018. Cropland values in the state have appreciated since then, according to NDSU Extension data. For instance, cropland in the East Central region of the state 鈥� which includes Eddy, Foster, Stutsman and Wells counties 鈥� has gone from an average of $1,981 per acre in 2018 to an average of $3,413 per acre in 2025.
Stutsman County property tax information indicates High Plains Acres LLP purchased a half section in Chicago Township, south of Medina, North Dakota, in 2022 for $750,000, or $2,343.75 per acre, a little below the average land price in the East Central region that year of $2,514.
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Conflict of interest laws
. : "Federal officials have a basic duty not to allow private gain to influence their government service, which includes 'not hold[ing] financial interests that conflict with the conscientious performance of duty.'"
"If you or your spouse or minor child owned $30,000 of stock in a company that would be affected by your job duties, you would not be able to perform those duties until certain measures are taken to resolve the conflict. This would be true even if the extent of the gain or loss is small or isn鈥檛 known," a booklet on criminal conflict of interest laws explained.
The U.S. Treasury Department's website says Bessent is responsible for "the U.S. Treasury鈥檚 wide-ranging mission to maintain a strong economy, foster economic growth and create job opportunities for all Americans by promoting the conditions that enable prosperity at home and abroad as well as managing the U.S. Government鈥檚 finances. He is also responsible for strengthening U.S. national security by combating economic threats and protecting the financial system."
As Secretary of Treasury, Bessent has been involved in discussions, negotiations and decisions regarding taxes, inflation, prices, trade and tariffs, along with numerous other matters on the economy. He has been an outspoken proponent of tariffs since prior to his time in the Trump administration, saying they "have a long and storied history as both a revenue-raising tool and a way of protecting strategically important industries in the U.S." in a piece published .
"We are the largest importer in the world and thus the single most important market for other countries鈥� exports. Our size gives us market power and the ability to dictate terms 鈥� other countries need us more than we need them. We have but to use that power," he wrote in the piece.
saying they "are the top two commodities contributing to the U.S. agricultural export value, accounting for about one-fourth of the total."
According to the Congressional Research Service, executive branch officials "who fail to recuse themselves when their official role would conflict with their financial interests" could face criminal penalties.
The Trust Project
