Farmers Celebrate Peanut Month, PB&J Day |
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Gov. Kay Ivey proclaimed March Peanut Month Wednesday, which kicked off PB&J Day on the Hill. The Alabama Peanut Producers Association, an affiliate of the Alabama Farmers Federation, served legislators, staffers and guests grilled peanut butter and jelly sandwiches outside the State House. Inside, lawmakers took a step closer to declaring the peanut Alabama's official state legume. |
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Farm Package Bills Pass House of Representatives
Two of three bills featured in the Alabama Farmers Federation’s 2022 Farm Package unanimously passed the House of Representatives Thursday.
“We appreciate the legislature’s support of Alabama farmers,” said Federation President Jimmy Parnell. “We especially want to thank Speaker Mac McCutcheon and the House leadership for making these bills a priority and bringing them to the floor during a busy legislative session.”
HB 400 by Rep. Wes Kitchens, R-Arab, would eliminate inconsistencies and confusion across jurisdictions by clarifying the ad valorem tax exemption for grain bins. HB 415 by Rep. Gil Isbell, R-Gadsden protects family farms by expressly prohibiting the requirement of a county license or fee for operations related to the disposition of the farmer’s products.
Both bills now go to the Senate for consideration, where companion bills — SB 275 by Sen. Larry Stutts, R-Tuscumbia, and SB 273 by Sen. Tom Butler, R-Madison — have already cleared committee. HB 415 will be considered by the Senate Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development Committee Wednesday at 1 p.m. in the Finance and Taxation Room of the State House.
A third bill, the Sweet Grown Alabama Act would empower family farms and stimulate local economies by clarifying the inclusion of value-added agricultural products in existing sales tax exemptions. HB 412 by Rep. Van Smith, R-Billingsley, will be considered by the House Ways & Means Education Committee Wednesday at 9 a.m. in State House Room 200.
Please contact your legislators and encourage them to support HB 412 and the companion, SB 274, by Sen. Steve Livingston, R-Scottsboro.
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House Passes Record Education Trust Fund Budget
The Alabama House of Representatives this week passed a record $8.1 billion Education Trust Fund (ETF) Budget including spending for agricultural programs and workforce development. The budget, which passed 100-1, now heads to the Senate. Bills accompanying the budget would provide a 4% pay raise for teachers and a lump sum bonus for retirees.
ETF allocations of interest to Alabama Farmers Federation members are:
- Agriscience Education Program Improvement Specialists — $233,900
- Agriscience Teachers Extended Contracts — $1,000,000
- Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station — $38,783,091
- Alabama Agricultural Land Grant Alliance — $6,266,283
- Alabama Agriculture in the Classroom — $100,000
- Alabama Cooperative Extension System — $40,724,865
- Alabama Treasure Forest Association — $60,000
- Auburn University Livestock Judging — $250,000
- Auburn University Poultry Science Department — $250,000
- Forestry Commission Education Program — $200,000
- Jones Valley Teaching Farm — $400,000
- Liberty Learning Foundation — $425,000
- North Alabama Agriplex — $58,000
- Resource Conservation and Development — $4,337,744
- Rural Medical Scholars Programs (total) — $1,940,114
- Soil and Water Conservation Committee — $2,673,376
As the ETF moves to the Senate, the Federation is seeking $300,000 to help FFA members develop knowledge and professional connections through membership in their local farm organization and $150,000 for a state large animal specialist to work with 4-H Club members.
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Legislation To Make Peanut State Legume Clears House
The nutritious, versatile peanut would officially become Alabama’s state legume under legislation approved unanimously Thursday by the House of Representatives.
HB 350 by Rep. Wes Allen, R-Troy, was amended to include language highlighting the contributions of George Washington Carver to peanuts as a profitable farm commodity.
During his 47-year career at Tuskegee University, Carver taught methods of crop rotation and introduced alternative crops for farmers to improve soil health, including peanuts. To address the growing supply of the legume, Carver developed more than 300 food, industrial and commercial products from peanuts. He was inducted into the Alabama Agriculture Hall of Honor last month alongside founding pioneers of the Alabama Farmers Federation.
HB 350 will be considered by the Senate Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development Committee Wednesday at 1 p.m. in the Finance and Taxation Room of the State House.
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Senate Committee Approves Gambling Package
The Senate Tourism Committee this week approved a gambling package to legalize casinos, online betting, sports books and a lottery.
SB 293 by Sen. Greg Albritton, R-Range, proposes a constitutional amendment to create a statewide lottery and legalize other forms of gambling. SB 294, also by Albritton, provides additional details about the regulation and taxation of gambling as well as expenditure of lottery and gaming proceeds.
Alabama Farmers Federation opposes gambling in all forms. Members are encouraged to contact their legislators and ask them to vote “no” on the gambling package.
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House Committee Approves General Fund Budget
The House Ways and Means General Fund Committee this week approved its version of a $2.7 billion General Fund budget. The budget includes funding for all Alabama Farmers Federation priorities included in the Senate-passed version plus $200,000 for an economic development specialist at the Alabama Forestry Commission (AFC).
The proposed position is the result of the Federation’s Forest Products Study Committee, which met last year to explore promotion of Alabama forest products, industry recruitment and research.
Federation External Affairs Department Director Brian Hardin credited House Ways and Means General Fund Committee Chairman Steve Clouse, R-Ozark, for ensuring the needs of forest landowners were addressed in the House version of the budget.
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In Memoriam
The Alabama Farmers Federation extends deepest sympathies to Rep. David Wheeler's wife, Diane, and their family. We also offer our condolences to Sen. Dan Roberts in the passing of his wife, Anne.
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SB 134 by Sen. Donnie Chesteen, R-Geneva, was signed into law by Gov. Kay Ivey. The new law cracks down on theft of catalytic converters by providing requirements for their purchase, possession and sale as well as creating criminal penalties for violations.
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Capitol Connection | Alabama Farmers Federation | (334) 288-3900 | AlfaFarmers.org
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