April 8, 2011

PERSPECTIVE OKLAHOMA FARM BUREAU

®

April 8, 2011

OFB legislation out of committee, heads to floor

By Kinsey Money, OFB Director of Research & Policy Development

A busy two weeks at the capitol concluded with key bills moving a step closer to full approval. The House and the Senate have been hearing bills in committee and on the floor that originated in the opposite chamber.

Oklahoma Farm Bureau had several bills pass out of committee.

The following bills were passed out of committee and are waiting to be heard on the floor.

YF&R Golf Classic is May 6 in Seminole Register now for the 9th Annual YF&R Golf Classic, sponsored by OFB’s Young Farmers and Ranchers. The golf tournament will be held Friday, May 6 at the Jimmy Austin Golf Course in Seminole.

All proceeds will benefit the Oklahoma Farm Bureau Legal Foundation, which protects private property rights and production agriculture.

Space is limited, so act now!

The first 36 teams registered will play in a four-man scramble.

Participants may register as a team, or individually. The cost is $340 per team, or $85 per person. Mulligans are also available for purchase for $10 each (limit 3 per person).

Sponsorships are welcome!

Teams or individuals must be registered and paid by Monday, May 2. To register, contact OFB’s Kelli Beall, (405) 523-2470 or Kelli.Beall@okfb. org. Send checks, payable to the OFB Legal Foundation, to Oklahoma Farm Bureau, Attn: Kelli Beall, 2501 N. Stiles, Oklahoma City, OK 73105.

Check-in is at 10:30 a.m., followed by lunch at 11 a.m.

Teams will tee off at noon.

HB 1044, authored by Rep. George Faught and Sen. Anthony Sykes, requires certain proposed agency rules to be approved by the legislature before the end of each legislative session. HB 1044 was passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on March 29.

HB 1249, authored by Rep. Wade Rousselot and Sen. Kim Davis, removes the exemption in current law allowing for retrieval of domestic animals without (See Legislation moves, page 3)

2011 OFB Commodity Tour LEFT – Caddo County’s Linda Taggart, left, and Garvin County’s Raymond Temple test out a chute on a tour of the Tall Grass Prairie Preserve’s buffalo pens during OFB’s Commodity Tour March 24.

RIGHT – Farm Bureau leaders and staff attending the 2011 OFB Commodity Tour paused for a group photo during a tour of the Head Country Barbecue manufacturing plant in Ponca City March 24.

LEFT – Sooner Cattle Company near Pawhuska was one of several stops on OFB’s Commodity Tour March 23-24. During the two-day trip, leaders toured farms and ranches, processing faclities, manufactruing plants and other agribusinesses across the northeast section of the state.

Member Benefits • Farm Bureau Bank – Offers access to a broad

array of financial services for members. Checking, loans, CDs, money markets and credit cards are a few of the services available only to members. 800492-3276, www.farmbureaubank.com

• Choice Hotels International™ – Members can save up to 30 percent off their next stay.

OFB will highlight a few benefits in each issue of Perspective as a reminder of the savings available to OFB members.

Find a complete list of savings online at www.okfarmbureau.org.

OFB Calendar YF&R Legislative Day April 13 • Oklahoma City Contact: Chris Kidd, 580-228-4001

YF&R CONFERENCE – The 2011 Oklahoma Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers conference was held March 31 – April 3 at the Quartz Mountain Lodge in southwest Oklahoma. The group toured the Altus and Hobart areas as part of the event. Check out the special YF&R insert in our next issue for a conference wrap-up.

OK YOUTH EXPO – The Oklahoma Youth Expo’s Grand Champion Market Barrow, a crossbred shown by Brianna Robinson of El Reno, was purchased by the Oklahoma Farm Bureau and Central State Trailers during the Expo’s Sale of Champions March 21.

AFBF Women’s Leadership Conference April 15-19 • Baltimore, MD Contact: Marcia Irvin, 405-523-2405 YF&R Golf Classic May 6 • Seminole Contact: Chris Kidd, 580-228-4001

Oklahoma Farm Bureau Online Monitor the latest Farm Bureau and agricultural news and information online at www.okfarmbureau.org.

Currently online: • YF&R Golf Classic – The 9th Annual YF&R Golf Classic will be held May 6 at the Jimmy Austin Golf Course in Seminole. Proceeds will benefit the OFB Legal Foundation. More information is available online!

• Legislative Update – Recent legislative activity on Oklahoma Farm Bureau priority legislation is updated frequently on OFB’s Web site. Public Policy staff record action on legislation of interest to keep members informed.

www.okfarmbureau.org 2

AFBF delegation visits Panama, Colombia to support FTAs A delegation of American Farm Bureau Federation leaders visited Panama and Colombia in early April to show support for pending U.S. trade agreements with each of the countries. The trip coincides with the organization’s efforts to enact the Panama, Colombia and Korea free trade agreements as quickly as possible.

“These agreements have languished for far too long and need to be passed as soon as possible,” said AFBF President Bob Stallman, who led the delegation. “It’s significant that we’re able to demonstrate our support for these agreements faceto-face with Panamanian and Colombian agriculture leaders and producers.”

The delegation met with government representatives, U.S. embassy officials, agriculture leaders and producers in Panama and Colombia to reinforce AFBF’s support for the FTAs.

Legislation moves to floor..................

(Continued from page 1)

Spradling named DASNR Champion Tulsa County farmer-rancher Mike Spradling has been named a 2011 DASNR Champion by Oklahoma State University’s Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.

“My degrees may not have been from OSU’s College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, but CASNR is where my heart has been since early in life,” said Spradling, a Cowboy alumnus who earned his bachelor’s degree in business from OSU in 1970.

The DASNR Champion Award recognizes and honors those who are not CASNR graduates but who have brought distinction to the division while demonstrating a continuing interest in and commitment for agricultural sciences and natural resources.

The division is comprised of the college and two state agencies: the Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment Station system and the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service.

A 1966 graduate of Broken ArrowHigh School, Spradling and his wife Lotsee own and operate the Flying G Ranch near Lotsee, Oklahoma’s smallest town that is actually named for his wife. Cattle and pecans are their primary agricultural enterprises. They also have a retail pecan operation.

“Mike is very much aware of the concerns and issues faced by Oklahoma producers and related agribusiness operators, which has played a significant role in the guidance he has provided over the years as a member of our dean’s advisory council, helping us ensure that division programs remain relevant and focused on high-priority needs,” said (See Spradling, page 4)

landowner permission. HB 1249 was passed out of the Senate Agriculture and Rural Development Committee on March 28.

HB 1296, authored by Rep. David Derby and Sen. Clark Jolley, requires municipalities to obtain consent of a majority of the acres before annexing property. HB 1296 was passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on March 29.

SB 92, authored

by Sen. Ron Justice and Rep. Steve Kouplen, reforms the continuing education requirements for poultry growers.

SB 92 was passed out of the House Agriculture, Wildlife and Environment Committee on March 23. It has been set on the House Floor Agenda.

OFB also supported two other bills passed out of committee.

SB 169, authored by Sen. David Myers and Rep. Don Armes, increases the checkoff fee to two cents per bushel on all wheat sold by producers in the state. SB 169

passed out of the House Appropriations and Budget Subcommittee on Natural Resources and Regulatory Services. It will now proceed to the House Appropriations and Budget Committee.

SB 147, authored by Sen. Don Barrington and Rep. Corey Holland, changes the requirements for incorporating a town. These changes make the process

harder for individuals seeking to grab agricultural land strictly for incorporation purposes. SB 147 passed out of the House General Government Committee on March 30.

LEGISLATIVE DINNER – Rep. Todd Russ spoke to a packed house of Farm Bureau leaders during a recent joint legislative dinner, hosted by Kiowa and Washita County Farm Bureaus. The dinner was held at the Western Technology Center in Hobart.

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Published by Oklahoma Farm Bureau

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Spradling named DASNR Champion.............. (continued from page 3) Robert E. Whitson, DASNR vice president, dean and director.

Spradling was elected as the eighth president of Oklahoma Farm Bureau, the state's largest general farm organization, on Nov. 10, 2007, at the organization's 66th annual meeting in Oklahoma City.

He has served on the Oklahoma Farm Bureau state board of directors since 1999, when he was elected to fill an unexpired term. Spradling was re-elected and has served continuously since then, representing Farm Bureau members from Creek, Lincoln, Okfuskee, Okmulgee, Osage, Payne, Pawnee, Tulsa and Washington counties as the district nine director.

In addition, Spradling currently serves as a board member of the 4-H Foundation and the American Farm Bureau Federation, a trustee for Indian Electric Coop, a representative on the Oklahoma Association of Electric Coops and as secretary of the Tulsa County Public Facilities Authority.

He also was in the first class of the division’s Oklahoma Agricultural Leadership Program in the early 1980s.

Participants must be engaged in production agriculture or a related agriculture business and show a strong commitment to aspire to a leadership role to benefit Oklahoma agriculture. It consists of a series of seminars and study tours over a two-year period.

“Mike Spradling’s commitment to the well-being of agriculture, agribusiness operators, farm families and rural Oklahoma makes him most deserving of being named a charter recipient of the DASNR Champion Award,” Whitson said.

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RIGHT – Robert E. Whitson, DASNR vice president, dean and director (left) presents the DASNR Champion award to Mike Spradling, who was accompanied by his wife, Lotsee. The award recognizes and honors those who are not CASNR graduates, but who have brought distinction to the division.

DASNR Champion

LEFT – Comanche County Farm Bureau leaders, from left, Benny Taylor, Kenneth Scott, Don Hankins and Edward Bard talked agriculture issues with Rep. Dennis Johnson during a visit to the State Capitol March 15.

RIGHT – Garvin County Farm Bureau’s Capitol Visit was held March 15. From left, are Raymond and Mary Temple; their grandson, Jon Temple Lee; their daughter, Mary Ann Temple Lee; Sen. Paddock; and their granddaughter, Mary D. Temple Lee.