OKLAHOMA FARM BUREAU
WWW.OKFARMBUREAU.ORG
March 18, 2016
Now is the time to step up for education By John Collison • OKFB Vice President of Public Policy reetings from the state Capitol, where we get a lot of things done, but I’m not sure many of them really matter. We now have spent six weeks on bills that had to get out of the House or Senate to remain alive in the process, but I’m not sure any of them make much of a difference. You can’t really blame the legislators of today because this is how the process is set up. I believe your legislators would like to focus on the budget, but the system is built to focus on policy due to deadlines and other issues. We’ve seen great wailing and gnashing of teeth at the Capitol on issues such as education, guns and – don’t forget – the budget. Over the past few weeks, I called on our membership to take an active role in the education of our children and how we affect the policy of that issue. Lately, too many bills have tried to pick education apart bit by bit, without creating any plan for the future. We have asked state
leaders for a road map for the future, so we have some idea how to fix the problems. While we need their help to solve the education crisis, they also need our help. We must be proactive in solving issues like funding, failing schools and all other problems in public education. For far too long, we have only tried to maintain the status quo; that will not work in the future. We must stop pitting rural and urban against each other and start looking at all underperforming schools. We also need to develop a funding formula that works for all and allow schools to have a normal existence. We are trying to work alongside the state superintendent of schools to come up with a plan for the future of Oklahoma’s public education. A plan of certainty and success. A plan that will stop legislators from trying to educate our students from 23rd and Lincoln. A plan that really starts educating and funding schools at the local level. We do have a problem in education, and that problem is a lack of vision and a lack of planning. With Farm Bureau’s help, I’m hopeful we can find a solution for education that will prepare our children for their future and for the future of Oklahoma.
Water, education, SQ 777 focus of conference ore than 150 farmers, ranchers and state leaders attended the Oklahoma Farm Bureau Legislative Leadership Conference March 7-8 at the Aloft Hotel in Oklahoma City. The two-day conference focused on State Question 777, or the Right to Farm, along with the state’s budget shortfall, education and water. “Our members lead the way in Oklahoma agricultural policy,” said Monica Wilke, OKFB executive director. “The Legislative
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Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt speaks on the role of government and his work combating federal overreach.
AFBF seeks responses for big data in agriculture survey he American Farm Bureau Federation recently launched an online survey to collect feedback from farmers about farm data. The survey, which is open to all farmers and ranchers, will help gauge progress on big data issues and give some important insight into new issues. When Farm Bureau conducted a similar survey on big data in September 2014, nearly 3,400 farmers responded. The top concerns at that time were: • 82 percent of farmers were unaware of all the ways a company intended to use their farm data and with whom it was being shared; • 77 percent of farmers were concerned that their data could get in the hands of an entity and be used for regulatory purposes; • 75 percent of farmers were concerned that their data could be used by a company or third party for market-sensitive commercial activities; and • More than half of farmers indicated that they were unsure whether or not their farm data could be shared with an off-farm company’s third party, business party or affiliate. The results of the survey proved quite helpful in prioritizing the development of further actions on the issue of big data. For example, the survey showed 66 percent of farmers were interested in a neutral, independent data warehouse service designed to store their farm data. This led Farm Bureau to become one of ten founding members (and the only farm organization) of the Ag Data Coalition.
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