With a new Congress convening in January, committee assignments are starting to come in for the six new Republican members of the Florida delegation. The freshmen from the Sunshine State will be sitting on a number of important committees as the Republicans take control from the Democrats.

On Friday, U.S. Rep. Frank Lucas, R-Okla., who will lead the House Agriculture Committee when the Republicans take over in January, named incoming U.S. Rep. Steve Southerland from North Florida to the committee.

"I am pleased to welcome our new members to the Agriculture Committee,” said Lucas. “They represent a broad slice of the country and will bring that perspective as we address the issues facing production agriculture and rural economies. The work of our committee affects the lives of every American. We must work to ensure that there is proper oversight of the administration, that rural America has opportunities for job growth, and that our farmers and ranchers have the necessary tools and certainty they need to provide us with a safe, affordable, and abundant food, fiber, feed, and fuel supply.”

Southerland, who defeated Democratic U.S. Rep. Allen Boyd in November, is one of 16 new Republicans on the committee. Southerland will also sit on the Natural Resources Committee, where he'll be joined by incoming Republican U.S. Rep. David Rivera from South Florida who will also be on the House Foreign Affairs Committee chaired by U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen from Florida. 

Hernando County Sheriff Rich Nugent, the Republican who won the seat held by retiring U.S. Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite, was named to the Committee on Homeland Security and the Committee on Veteran Affairs which will be chaired by his fellow Florida Republican, U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller.

"Serving on these committees will give me a chance to continue fighting for a safer America and to be an advocate for those who risked everything in defense of our nation," said Nugent. "With three sons in the military and more than 30 years in local law enforcement, I look forward to bringing real-world experience to both committees."

U.S. Rep. John Mica -- soon to be the chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure when the GOP takes control of Congress in January -- named new Republican members of his committee on Thursday, including a fellow Floridian -- incoming U.S. Rep. Dan Webster. Webster defeated Democratic U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson back in November.

“The new members of the committee will be rolling up their sleeves and helping to improve our nation’s infrastructure, put people back to work, get stalled projects moving, and conduct aggressive oversight of transportation projects and policy,” said Mica. “The committee and its new Republican members will be at the forefront of cutting government waste and red tape, and to finding cost-effective solutions for getting our country moving in the right direction.”