Friday, February 13, 2009
Volume 09, Issue 5
The following county Farm Bureaus are scheduled to visit the Statehouse next week. Tuesday, February 17: Allen, Bartholomew, Crawford, Montgomery & Switzerland Wednesday, February 18: Clay, Clinton, Daviess, Greene, Harrison, Knox, Lake, Lawrence, Martin, Monroe, Owen, Porter, Sullivan & Vigo Thursday, February 19: Dubois, Gibson, Hamilton, LaGrange, Noble, Orange, Pike, Posey, Spencer, Vanderburgh & Warrick
SENATE PASSES 1-2-3 CAP AMENDMENT The Indiana State Senate has passed SJR 1 by a vote of 34-16 with all 33 Republican Senators and Democrat Frank Mrvan (East Chicago) voting for it with the remaining 16 Democrats opposing it. This is the resolution that will limit a homeowner’s property tax bill to 1% of the home’s assessed value; farmland and rental property to 2%; and business and personal property, including farm machinery, to 3%. Prior to the vote, all senators were reminded by email that Farm Bureau opposes passing the resolution this year and asked them to vote against it. The email message, which came from Farm Bureau’s Bob Kraft, cited the same reasons that were outlined in last week’s Dispatch. SJR 1, which was authored by Sen. Luke Kenley (R-Noblesville), moves to the House where its fate remains uncertain. House Speaker Pat Bauer (D-South Bend) would reportedly prefer to wait until next year to consider the resolution while Governor Mitch Daniels is urging its adoption this year. Whether the resolution is adopted this year or next, it must be ratified by the voters at the 2010 general election before the Constitution will, in fact, be amended. With the resolution now in the House, the focus of Farm Bureau’s grassroots lobbying effort must now shift to the House. Please contact your state representatives with the message that you oppose SJR 1 and you hope they will oppose it as well.
FARM BUREAU PRESENCE NOTED AT STATEHOUSE Each week in the Dispatch we have been identifying county Farm Bureaus that are planning to visit the Statehouse during the upcoming week. If your home county is listed, the Farm Bureau lobby team urges you to make every effort to participate in that visit. If you can’t make it, you can still visit the Statehouse independently or visit with your legislators when they are home over the weekend. These organized visits are giving Farm Bureau a regular visible presence at the Statehouse and reinforcing our reputation as an organization with a knowledgeable and committed grassroots membership.
RURAL CAUCUS HOLDS ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING At the invitation of Sen. Richard Young (D-Milltown) and Sen. Jean Leising (R-Oldenburg), 23 legislators representing all four caucuses attended an organizational meeting on Monday to explore the possibility of establishing a rural caucus. It is the hope of the organizers of this bipartisan initiative that they can bring together those legislators who represent predominantly rural districts to discuss issues from that perspective. While Farm Bureau is supportive of this effort, we are not involved in its organization nor in setting its agenda.
HOUSE COMMITTEE HEARS ANIMAL AG BILLS The House Agriculture Committee heard two bills relating to animal agriculture this week but deferred taking any action on them. Rep. Dave Cheatham (D-North Vernon) is the author of both HB 1074 and HB 1075. HB 1074 would require IDEM to consider the history and background of applicants for animal feeding permits in the state. HB 1075 would establish a setback of two miles for permitted livestock operations from any property under the jurisdiction of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. Farm Bureau’s Justin Schneider testified against both of these bills. In the case of HB 1074, he told the committee that Farm Bureau agrees there should be a procedure to assure that so-called “bad actors” were not given permits for livestock operations in Indiana but that Farm Bureau and several livestock organizations had been working with IDEM on SB 221 and that we preferred that to be the vehicle for such action. With respect to HB 1075, Schneider explained that the requirement for a two-mile setback from every stream and river in the state would result in virtually the whole state being off limits for animal agriculture.
BILL TO ALLOW MOTORIZED FARM WAGONS MOVES IN HOUSE The House Agriculture Committee amended and forwarded to the full House HB 1483 (Rep. Don Lehe, R-Brookston), which will allow motorized farm wagons to be used to transport an individual from one farm field to another, including on a county road. Such vehicles may cross, but not travel along, state highways and are prohibited on interstates. The bill had been presented at an earlier committee meeting and was supported by Farm Bureau’s Wayne Dillman. Meanwhile, the House did pass HB 1043 (Rep. Dave Wolkins, R-Winona Lake), which will allow the use of mini-trucks on Indiana roads.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT REORGANIZATION REMAINS A HOT TOPIC Discussion of the bills that would implement the Kernan-Shepard local government reorganization recommendations continued to draw huge audiences of both local public officials and interested citizens. Bills to implement two of the most controversial of the report’s recommendations were heard on Wednesday this week, but neither was voted out of committee. The first of these was SB 512 (Sen. Connie Lawson, R-Danville), which would abolish the office of township trustee as of January 1, 2013, and transfer the trustee’s duties to the county executive. The bill, which was heard in the Senate Local Government Committee chaired by Sen. Lawson, was opposed by a number of current trustees and citizens who expressed concern that the delivery of essential services would be removed too far from the local community if the trustee were to be eliminated. Among the witnesses opposing the bill were retired Farm Bureau regional manager Tony Wolfe of Gibson County and Farm Bureau District 8 Director Mark Bacon. Neither Wolfe nor Bacon appeared on behalf of Farm Bureau. Katrina Hall, who had planned to oppose the bill, was among the witnesses who did not get to testify because of time constraints.
The other reorganization bill that received considerable attention this week was SB 521 (Sen. Gary Dillon, R-Pierceton). This bill, which was heard in the Senate Education & Career Development Committee, would require school corporations with an enrollment of less than 500 students to merge with another school corporation by 2013. The bill does provide an exemption for charter schools.
IMMIGRATION HEARINGS CONCLUDE, ACTION SUSPENDED The Senate Pensions & Labor Committee concluded its hearings on SB 580 (Sen. Dennis Kruse, R-Auburn) on Wednesday by hearing from witnesses who oppose the bill. The testimony was divided into three major categories. First, immigration lawyers and law professors expressed the opinion that the field of immigration was pre-empted by the federal government and the state should not be involved in such activity. The second set of testimony came from social welfare organizations concerned about the inherent human dignity of the individuals who have chosen to immigrate to the United States and Indiana. Finally, the third set of witnesses represented businesses that find it prudent to employ migrant or immigrant workers. Agriculture was represented by Mark Kamman, a melon grower from Jackson County. Kamman explained that it was impossible to find local people who were willing to do the work he needed done. He said that the local young people he did hire rarely lasted more than a day on the job. Farm Bureau opposes the bill on the basis that it is a federal issue and should be dealt with by the federal government. At the end of the testimony, Committee Chairman Kruse offered an amendment which was essentially the text of another bill he authored, SB 273. The amendment was supported by Sen. Kruse and the Democrats on the committee but opposed by his fellow Republicans. No vote was taken on the bill itself.
SCHOOL CALENDAR REMAINS UNCHANGED An effort to prevent schools from opening earlier than the fourth Monday in August received a cool reception from the House Education Committee this week. The bill, HB 1354 (Rep. Ryan Dvorak, D-South Bend), which would have established a minimum number of instructional hours rather than 180 instructional days, was opposed by education groups. Farm Bureau’s Wayne Dillman spoke in favor of the bill arguing that the early opening of school in some communities interferes with students’ ability to attend the State Fair and participate in 4-H activities.
BILL TO REQUIRE STATE TO BUILD LINE FENCES HELD IN COMMITTEE The House Local Government Committee heard HB 1118, a bill that would require state agencies to build perimeter fences like any other property owner. The bill was presented by its author, Rep. Dick Dodge (R-Pleasant Lake), and supported by Farm Bureau’s Bob Kraft who explained that the perimeter fence law is limited to situations where at least one of two adjoining parcels is agricultural land. The committee seemed more concerned about the fence law itself rather than whether or not state agencies should have to comply with it. Committee chair Vernon Smith (D-Gary) appointed a subcommittee to consider the bill further and report back next week.
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