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Timeline to a checkoffA national sorghum checkoff was first discussed three years ago. At that time, the atmosphere surrounding national checkoffs was not stable. At the Spring 2006 NSP Board of Directors meeting, leadership instructed the NSP staff to re-evaluate the possibility. In May, NSP officers and staff met with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's staff to discuss the potential for a national checkoff program. NSP President Greg Shelor, Minneola, Kan., appointed a committee, led by NSP President-Elect Dale Murden, Monte Alto, Texas, to offer recommendations to the Board at the August 2006 meeting. Staff also visited with other checkoff organizations formed under the 1996 generic checkoff legislation to see how a checkoff would fit into sorghum's future. In August the committee members made their recommendations as to the cornerstones of a possible program. The NSP Board discussed these cornerstones at great length at its meeting in Lubbock, Texas. As it stands today, the NSP Board of Directors has voted unanimously to move forward with the national sorghum checkoff process. This includes getting feedback from each sponsoring organization to gather more input. By September, a draft of the legal text should be available and the NSP staff will have gathered industry support letters. The goal is to submit a document to the USDA by this winter. Once this document is submitted, it's at the discretion of the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns as to when the proposed rule is published in the Federal Register for comment. Past checkoffs have waited from six months to two years for publication. Sixty days from the Federal Register publication, the comment period will open. The final rule will then be published in the Federal Register 270 days from publication of the proposed rule. Once the final rule is published, a date will be set for a producer referendum. Date: 8/24/06
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