Whereas a cooperative— (1) is a business that is owned and governed by its members, who are the individuals who use the business, create the products of the business, or manage the operation of the business; and (2) operates under the 7 principles of— (A) voluntary open membership; (B) democratic control; (C) owner economic participation; (D) autonomy and independence; (E) education, training, and information; (F) cooperation among cooperatives; and (G) concern for community; Whereas cooperative entrepreneurs can be found in almost every economic sector in the United States, throughout all 50 States and territories, and in every congressional district in the United States; Whereas cooperatives help farmers increase incomes and become more resilient to economic business cycles by working together to plan and prepare for the future, while contributing significantly to the economic activity in the agriculture and food markets of the United States; Whereas the roughly 1,700 agricultural cooperatives in the United States operate more than 9,500 facilities, employ a record $111,000,000,000 in assets, and generate over $231,400,000,000 in business; Whereas the majority of the 2,000,000 farmers in the United States belong to an agricultural cooperative; Whereas agricultural cooperatives offer members the opportunity to access the commodity value-added profits throughout the handling, processing, and distribution chains; Whereas member-owners in agricultural cooperatives are dedicated to providing the highest quality product for consumers; Whereas agricultural cooperatives add significant benefits to the economic well-being of rural areas of the United States by providing more than 250,000 jobs with annual wages totaling more than $11,000,000,000; Whereas agricultural cooperatives provide resources to their member-owners, such as low-cost supplies, effective marketing, and services