Georgia Farm Bureau's Leadership Alert - October 13, 2010

October 13, 2010

www.gfb.org

Vol. 28 No. 41

GFB BEGINS POLICY DEVELOPMENT PROCESS The Georgia Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee met at the GFB headquarters in Macon on Monday to consider changes to the policy that guides Farm Bureau’s legislative initiatives. The committee consists of 30 county presidents, 20 commodity advisory committee chairmen and 25 GFB board members.

The committee is tasked with going through existing Farm Bureau policy and the policy resolutions counties submitted this year to develop a policy document the GFB voting delegates will consider at the annual GFB convention in December. This year, there were more than 350 resolutions submitted by 86 county Farm Bureaus. The 20 GFB Commodity Advisory Committees also offered resolutions for consideration.

“We received more resolutions about taxes than anything else,” said GFB President Zippy Duvall. “They cover everything from sales and estate taxes to the new 1099 requirements passed by Congress.”

The Policy Development committee urged that farm inputs not be subject to sales tax, and it called for permanent repeal of federal estate taxes. The committee was unanimous in its opposition to new laws that will require filing of form 1099s for purchases in excess of $600 per year.

Proposed rules by the Grain Inspection Packers & Stockyard Administration (GIPSA) dealing with livestock & poultry production contracts prompted 32 counties to submit resolutions from a wide range of viewpoints. The committee recommended support for tournament style production contracts and greater protection for producers regarding capital investments.

Water continues to be a topic of interest among farmers, but there was little disagreement on the issues. Members expressed strong support for rights of farmers to utilize water on a timely basis and for farmers to continue to be represented on boards and councils that make decisions about water management.

Farm Bureau’s position on pari-mutuel betting and horse racing generated more than a dozen resolutions, and the submissions differed greatly. Some favored support for pari-mutuel betting, others opposed it, and most were somewhere in between. The committee recommended that GFB keep its current position of support for a referendum letting the people of Georgia decide the issue.

Trade agreements have a major impact on Georgia farmers and the committee recommended policy changes to reflect that fact. Some of Georgia’s commodities are export dependent, and the changes allow for greater flexibility in assessing various trade agreements.

The policy development committee will meet again on Nov. 1 to finalize its policy recommendations and submit a document for consideration by the voting delegates in December.

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ROYAL URGES GFB TO CONTINUE EFFORTS WITH GA. TAX COUNCIL With the Special Council on Tax Reform & Fairness for Georgians working to formulate recommendations for the Georgia General Assembly, a former state legislator urged Georgia Farm Bureau members to continue their efforts to make their concerns known, both to the council and to their state representatives.

“Farm Bureau has probably the greatest lobby in the state of Georgia,” said former state Rep. Richard Royal, who served 25 years in the Georgia General Assembly. “You don't need to let your guard down now. Let your legislators know your concerns about taxes on inputs and machinery.”

Royal gave a report for the Coalition for Competitive Georgia during the 2010 GFB Policy Development meeting on Oct. 11, saying a wide range of tax revenue options and issues are being considered by the special council.

“They're comparing tax policy in Georgia with that in other states to see if the tax structure in Georgia puts us at a competitive disadvantage,” Royal said.

The council was formed under direction of HB 1405, which was voted into law during the 2010 session of the Georgia General Assembly in response to the state’s budget crisis.

The council will make recommendations to a special committee in the General Assembly by the start of the 2011 legislative session. The committee is directed to introduce legislation without significant changes to the recommendations. Those bills will be subject to a simple up or down vote without amendment.

The tax council has held four full meetings and has two remaining, scheduled for Nov. 3 and Dec. 1. It has also held nine public hearings and has hearings scheduled for Oct. 21 in Blue Ridge and Oct. 27 in Dalton.

TAX LEGISLATION TO BE A PRIORITY IN LAME DUCK SESSION When Congress returns for its lame duck session after the November elections, a number of tax issues important to agriculture will be up for consideration, chief among them the reinstatement of estate taxes.

The American Farm Bureau Federation is urging members of the House and Senate to pass tax legislation in order to avoid economic damage that would result from tax increases.

For 2010, there is no estate tax, but on Jan. 1 estate taxes will be reinstated with a top tax rate of 55 percent and a $1 million per person exemption. Seeking to protect family farms from estate tax burdens that would force some farms to be sold, Farm Bureau supports a $5 million exemption and a top rate of 35 percent, indexed for inflation and transferrable to a spouse.

Other unresolved tax issues include the capital gains tax, individual income tax rates and tax incentives for ethanol and biodiesel.

A group of 47 House Democrats wrote Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in support of maintaining the capital gains tax at 15 percent. The capital gains tax is scheduled to increase to 20 percent on Jan. 1. Individual income taxes are also scheduled to increase on Jan. 1.

The incentives for ethanol expire at the end of 2010 and those for biodiesel expired at the end of 2009.

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APPLICATIONS BEING ACCEPTED FOR GFB SCHOLARSHIPS Georgia Farm Bureau will award a total of $14,250 in scholarships to 10 high school seniors who plan to pursue an undergraduate degree in agricultural and environmental sciences, family and consumer sciences or a related agricultural field. The top three students will each receive a one-time scholarship of $3,000. The remaining seven students will each receive a one-time $750 scholarship.

The scholarships are available to students whose parents or legal guardians are members of Georgia Farm Bureau as of Sept. 1, 2010. Students submitting an application must currently be a high school senior and plan to enroll in a unit of the University System of Georgia or Berry College during the 2011-2012 academic year.

Contact your county Farm Bureau office for more information or an application. The application deadline is Feb. 25, 2011. Applications must be approved and signed by the Farm Bureau president of the county where Farm Bureau membership is held before being submitted to the home office.

You may also download a copy of the application by visiting http://www.gfb.org then selecting GFB Programs and then FB Women. Each county may submit up to four applications.

The Georgia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company and the GFB Women's Committee sponsor the scholarship program. Winners will be announced in May 2011.

DAIRY INDUSTRY COMPLETES CARBON FOOTPRINT STUDY In the dairy industry’s initial step in the process of measuring and improving its carbon footprint, a life cycle assessment (LCA) revealed that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the production of fluid milk account for approximately two percent of the total U.S. GHG emissions.

The Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy commissioned the study by the University of Arkansas and Michigan Technological University. The LCA covered the growth of crops to feed cows all the way to the disposal of milk cartons by consumers, and one of its key findings was that the adoption of best management practices along the entire fluid milk supply chain can increase profitability while improving environmental sustainability.

According to a release from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. dairy industry has a long history of environmental stewardship, reducing its carbon footprint by 63 percent from 1944 to 2007 as a result of production efficiencies, nutrition management and other on-farm improvements.

“American agriculture can play an important role in reducing carbon emissions and improving the environment, and the dairy industry in particular has been a leader on these issues,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “This carbon footprint study will be very helpful to all stakeholders in the dairy industry, and I look forward to working with dairy producers, processors and the entire value chain on efforts that benefit the environment and improve the economic viability of the industry.”

The study was completed in July. It measured the carbon footprint of a gallon of fluid milk from farm to table using data from more than 500 dairy farms and 50 dairy processors, along with information from more than 210,000 round trips to transport milk between farms and processing plants during the years 2007 and 2008.

Leadership Alert page 4 of 4 UPCOMING EVENTS SPECIAL COUNCIL ON TAX REFORM & FAIRNESS FACT FINDING SESSIONS Oct. 21 10 a.m. -1 p.m. Fannin County Recreation Center Blue Ridge Oct. 27 4-7 p.m.

Location to be announced Dalton The Special Council on Tax Reform and Fairness for Georgians continues holding public meetings to get feedback on Georgia’s tax structure. The council, created by Georgia House Bill 1405 earlier this year, is charged with studying Georgia’s current tax structure and submitting its findings and recommendations for changes to the speaker of the house and lieutenant governor at the beginning of the 2011 legislative session. Visit http://fiscalresearch.gsu.edu/taxcouncil/index.htm and click on Fact Finding Sessions to get more information or call 770-414-6507.

GFB DISTRICT ANNUAL MEETINGS Oct. 14 7th District First Baptist Church Oct. 26 6th District Poplar Springs North Baptist Church Contact your county Farm Bureau office for more information.

7 p.m.

7 p.m.

Statesboro Dublin

SUNBELT AGRICULTURAL EXPOSITION Oct. 19-21 Spence Field www.sunbeltexpo.com Moultrie Gates open at 8:30 a.m. daily. Admission is $10 per person or $20 for a multi-day ticket. Children 12 and under are admitted free. For more information call 229-985-1968.

FUMIGATION MANAGEMENT PLAN WORKSHOPS Oct. 26 Bulloch County Extension Office Statesboro Oct. 27 UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center Tifton Oct. 28 Decatur County Extension Office Bainbridge This series of workshops, organized by the Georgia Fruit & Vegetable Growers Association and the UGA Cooperative Extension, is designed to help familiarize growers with the EPA’s new soil fumigant regulations and create plans for their operations. Dr. Stanley Culpepper will be the principal speaker. All meetings will begin at 9 a.m. and end by 10:30 a.m. For more information call the GFVGA at 706-845-8200.

GEORGIA FARM BUREAU DISTRICT 2 CATTLE SHOW Oct. 29 – 30 White County Ag Center Cleveland nd Show is open to all junior beef cattle exhibitors from Georgia Farm Bureau’s 2 District, which consists of the following counties: Union, Towns, Rabun, Lumpkin, White, Habersham, Hall, Banks, Stephens, Franklin, Hart, Jackson, Madison and Elbert. Show applications are available at county Farm Bureau offices in the 2nd District and must be postmarked no later than Oct. 15. The show begins at 6 p.m. on Oct. 29 and 9:30 a.m. on Oct. 30. For more information, e-mail Clay Talton at cstalton@uga.edu or Dennis Black at dlblack@gfb.org.

2010 GEORGIA AGRITOURISM CONFERENCE Nov. 3-5 The Dillard House Dillard This conference will cover all aspects of running an agritourism business and legal issues facing agritourism operations. There will also be tours of Rabun County agritourism venues. Early bird registration is $125 before October 22 and $165 after. Registration includes meals, tours and materials. Visit www.areg.caes.uga.edu to register or call Brandon Ashley at 800-342-1196 for more information. A special conference lodging rate of $89 per night is available by calling the Dillard House at 1-800-541-0671.