| ||||
|
|
Policy Positions adopted by Farm Bureau delegates
Nebraska
Delegates to Nebraska Farm Bureau's 2004 convention in Kearney, Dec. 5 to 8, took action to deal with the consequences if the national beef check-off is declared unconstitutional. On the convention's last day, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on the constitutionality of the mandatory beef checkoff and will likely rule by spring.
If the beef checkoff is ruled constitutional, all mandatory checkoffs will likely be affected by the decision. As a contingency, the House of Delegates adopted policy on how voluntary state checkoff programs should be structured, Rob Robertson, vice president/governmental relations, said Dec. 10.
"Delegates favored a refund provision, rather than making checkoffs voluntary at the point of payment, and specified that refunds should be issued on a timely basis. They believe producer referenda on checkoffs are not necessary under a voluntary system," Robertson said. But they want checkoff board members to continue to be elected by producers, rather than appointed by the governor. The delegates also supported retention of the prohibition against using checkoff funds for lobbying.
The House of Delegates also supported legislation to protect the confidentiality of producer information supplied for a livestock identification system. "This includes exempting that information from state provisions that are similar to the federal Freedom of Information Act," Robertson said.
Among other state issues, the delegates supported restructuring of Nebraska's beginning farmer tax credit program. Use of the program has been less than hoped and modifications may be needed, Robertson said. "Currently the program is based on providing a tax credit to a retiring farmer to encourage leasing opportunities for young farmers. We want to reverse that, to target support to beginning farmers, with a tax deduction or tax credit for personal property tax or income tax, to support the investment a beginning farmer is making," he said.
Trade issues headlined national policy discussions. "The discussion among our delegates was a reflection of federal legislation and current issues on the national level," Robertson said. For example, the Farm Bureau representatives discussed what it would take for the U.S. to open its border to Canadian beef imports.
"Our delegates viewed this very realistically: there has to be some support for opening the border as long as it is science-based and Canada can assure us it has done everything possible to be sure no BSE-infected cattle are imported into the U.S." In particular, delegates wanted assurances that Canada has fully implemented the 1997 ban on bone meal/blood meal feed for ruminants. "There is concern that Canada may not have fully complied because of reports of some ruminant-based products being used in tankage," he said.
The delegates supported more research dollars for controlling soybean rust disease and educating producers about it, Robertson said, now that it has migrated to the U.S. "They want expedited approvals for as many fungicides as possible as soon as they become available, and they want to accelerate research investment by seed companies to develop soybean rust-resistant varieties as soon as possible."
The delegates supported the Central America Free Trade Agreement, which Congress will likely discuss and vote on next summer. They also expressed general support for World Trade Organizations negotiations and a framework for how negotiators address ag trade issues, Robertson said. "The delegates supported meeting the goals of reducing export subsidies and trade-distorting domestic supports, while having a specific time frame for developing countries to open their markets to our products."
Delegates opposed importation of duty-free ethanol from Caribbean Basin Initiative countries, he said, because nations such as Brazil are taking advantage of this loophole and can offer a better price than domestic producers.
Policies on state issues adopted by the House of Delegates will guide Nebraska Farm Bureau's work with the Nebraska Legislature and regulatory bodies. Policy statements on national issues have been forwarded to the American Farm Bureau for consideration at the national convention next month in Charlotte, N.C.
Date: 12/22/04
Copyright 1995-2008. High Plains Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Any republishing of these pages, including electronic reproduction of the editorial archives or classified advertising, is strictly prohibited. If you have questions or comments you can reach us at High Plains Journal 1500 E. Wyatt Earp Blvd., P.O. Box 760, Dodge City, KS 67801 or call 1-800-452-7171. Email: webmaster@hpj.com
 
| |||||||||||||||||||||
