THE USE OF ANTIBIOTICS in pork production again is emerging as an issue with legislation being introduced in the U.S. House. ..............................................2
ILLINOIS FARM BUREAU this year is putting a premium on member involvement in implementing new policy to guide the organization. .............3
THE NATIONAL WEATHER Service is predicting the frigid weather in Illinois could break this week with temperatures possibly climbing above freezing. ....................5
Monday, January 11, 2010
Two sections Volume 38, No. 2
Biodiesel credit delay fuels anxiety, slows plant flow BY MARTIN ROSS FarmWeek
Periodicals: Time Valued
Continued uncertainty about biodiesel tax incentives could sideline an industry already operating at significantly reduced production. Illinois Soybean Association Executive Director Lyle Roberts reported only about 15 percent of the nation’s 200some biodiesel plants were in operation last week, primarily because of concerns about availability of a $1-per-gallon biodiesel fuel blenders credit. Occupied with health care, the Senate failed to renew the credit prior to its Dec. 31 expiration. In Iowa, a key biodiesel state, “production’s pretty much shut down” pending credit extension, energy consultant John Urbanchuk told FarmWeek. In a December study, he warned eliminating the credit would have “a substantial negative impact on biodiesel production and the consequent economic and environmental benefits made by the biodiesel industry.” Roberts noted efforts are under way in Washington to extend the credit retroactively to Jan. 1 in order to spur biodiesel purchases in 2010.
But he questions how long operating plants will be able to meet costs and continue production if the extension discussion “drags out into a late February-March timeframe.” “Like anything new on the market, our people need to have that (credit) in order to survive — to keep biodiesel flowing into the market, to keep people using it,” Roberts argued. “From a farmer perspective, it’s horribly important: 75 percent of our (soy) oil goes into vegetable oil markets, but we put quite a bit into the biodiesel market, as well. “You’re into the contracting season for fuel suppliers; you’re into farmers making decisions about what their going to plant. It’s leaving a lot of variables that See Biodiesel, page 4
AMONG THE LUCKY ONES
Seward-area producer Richard Beuth, right, installs a manure gas warning placard supplied by the Winnebago County Farm Bureau as his son, Paul, works in the background. The safety campaign — offering reflective metal signs free of charge to area dairy, beef, and swine producers — is being highlighted as a nationwide County Activity of Excellence during the America Farm Bureau Federation’s annual meeting this week in Seattle. In July 2008, a local dairy producer was overcome by methane gas while working alone in a pit used to transfer manure from his milking parlor to a lagoon. The man’s 20-year-old son attempted a rescue, but also succumbed to the gases before a second son could phone for help. “There’s no reason ever to go down there unless you have the proper (safety) equipment and people right by,” Beuth advises. “It’s just not worth it.” (Photo by Ken Kashian)
Legislative Roundtable
Budget cuts, tough decisions in store for state BY KAY SHIPMAN FarmWeek
Deep snow isn’t the only thing Illinois will be digging out of this winter. Existing and anticipated holes in the state budget loomed large in reports to the Illinois Agricultural Legislative Roundtable last week. The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) is preparing to cut 14 percent from its budget proposal, Illinois Agriculture Director Tom Jennings told assembled leaders from across the state. “We will have a lot less money,” he warned. “We’re going to cut anywhere we can,” Jennings told FarmWeek. He said IDOA is considering across-the-board cuts. For the current fiscal year, IDOA’s budget is $105 million
to $106 million. About half of that is used to fund ag-related programs, such as University of Illinois Extension and Soil and Water Conservation Districts, that are not operated by IDOA. Those entities are being asked for ideas on spending cuts and for ways they can raise money to become more selfsupporting, Jennings said. Jennings read a laundry list of $2 million in proposed fee increases for different IDOA services and licenses. The fee increases would go to support related programs, he said. All of state government is sharing the pain. The state’s budget deficit is an estimated $11.5 billion, which is about 44 percent of the state’s general revenue fund, said Kevin Semlow, Illinois Farm Bureau director of state
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legislation. The total state budget is $54 billion of which $26 billion is supported by tax revenue in the general revenue fund. Meanwhile, revenue continues to decline, according to Semlow. Personal income tax revenue was down 9.1 percent, and sales tax revenue as of November was down 13 percent. The state won’t receive any money from the estate tax this year because it expired last Dec. 31. That tax generated $288 million last year. The problem is so severe that if Illinois paid off all its debts in the next fiscal year, the state would have enough money remaining to operate programs for only seven months, Semlow estimated. “It’s going to be a difficult year, in my estimation — even
more difficult than last year,” Semlow said. The severity of state money problems spurred one Roundtable group to propose “fiscal integrity” as the theme for a summer gubernatorial candidate forum. State lawmakers have set a very tight schedule to grapple with the state’s funding problems and legislative issues. The General Assembly is to meet three days this month. The House is then scheduled to return on Feb. 3 with the Senate returning on Feb. 8. With tentative adjournment scheduled for May 7, the spring session will have a packed schedule, Semlow noted. Semlow advised ag leaders not to wait to address their issues “or you’ll be left in the cold.”
Illinois Farm Bureau®on the web: www.ilfb.org