In April, ASM worked with a coalition of scientific organizations to develop a letter of support for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). The letter, sent to Congress, urged lawmakers to fund AFRI with $300 million in fiscal year 2010, with the goal of reaching $550 million in fiscal year 2015. AFRI, a competitive grants program, was created in The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 and supports research, extension, and education within USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture, which will soon replace the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service. AFRI is currently authorized at $700 million annually and is the successor to the National Research Initiative and the Initiative for Future Agriculture and Food Systems.