Left, Rep. Jennifer Fidler, R-Fairhope, introduces HB 180 with the support of House Agriculture and Forestry Committee Chairman Danny Crawford, R-Athens. Right, Sen. Josh Carnley, R-Enterprise, introduces SB 91 on the Senate floor. | |
Bills To Streamline Checkoff Programs Introduced | |
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Freshman lawmakers with deep roots in Alabama's agriculture community this week introduced legislation to streamline rules related to certain commodity checkoffs, allowing more funds to go toward research, education and promotion.
SB 91 by Sen. Josh Carnley, R-Enterprise, and HB 180 by Rep. Jennifer Fidler, R-Fairhope, include the following provisions, by commodity:
Peanuts
- Remove the newspaper referendum notice requirement, bringing it into conformity with the other checkoff programs;
- Increase the time between referendums from three to five years; and
- Reduce the amount the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries is authorized to deduct for administrative costs from 5% to 3%, which is in line with other checkoffs.
Sheep and Goats
- Decrease the frequency of required audits from two years to five years
"We appreciate Sen. Carnley and Rep. Fidler making the checkoff bill among the first pieces of legislation they've sponsored," said Alabama Farmers Federation External Affairs Department Director Brian Hardin. "Their support of this bill demonstrates their connection and commitment to the farming community. These changes will reduce the costs associated with these checkoffs and free additional money to be used for programs and projects that directly benefit the farmers who contribute these funds."
SB 91 has been assigned to the Senate Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee; HB 180 has been assigned to the House Agriculture and Forestry Committee.
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Proposed Budgets Include Agriculture, Forestry Priorities | |
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Education Trust Fund (ETF) and General Fund (GF) budget proposals were introduced this week, including priorities for agriculture and forestry. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Rex Reynolds, R-Huntsville, is sponsoring HB 124, the proposed GF budget; Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee Chairman Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, is sponsoring SB 88, the proposed ETF. Agriculture and forestry also fared well in a supplemental ETF spending bill, proposed by the governor based on a projected $2.7 billion surplus.
Alabama Farmers Federation External Affairs Department Director Brian Hardin thanked Gov. Kay Ivey and the budget committees for their support of agriculture and forestry.
"Despite projected budget surpluses, we recognize there are competing priorities for state resources," Hardin said. "We appreciate the continued investment in rural Alabama and will work to further educate legislators about these programs as the budgets make their way through the House and Senate."
Education Trust Fund
- Alabama Ag in the Classroom, $100,000, unchanged
- Alabama TREASURE Forest Association, $60,000, unchanged
- FFA Affiliate Membership, $275,000 unchanged
- Agriscience Education Program Improvement Specialist, $233,900, unchanged
- North Alabama Agriplex, $58,000, unchanged
- National Livestock Competition Coordinator, $250,000, unchanged
- 4-H Youth Development and Animal Science Extension Specialist, $125,000, unchanged
- Rural Medical Scholars programs, $1.9 million, unchanged
- Rural Broadband Grant Program, $25 million, unchanged
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Alabama Agricultural Land Grant Alliance (AALGA), $6.49 million, up $100,000
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Soil & Water Conservation Committee Program, $2.82 million, up $200,000
- Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D), $5.29 million, unchanged
- Liberty Learning Foundation, $600,000, unchanged
- Jones Valley Teaching Farm, $450,000, up $50,000
- Career Tech Initiative, $36.17 million, up $11 million
- Agriscience Extended Contract Grants, $1 million, unchanged
- Farm to School Program, $400,000, up $100,000 (moved from GF)
General Fund
- Sweet Grown Alabama, $300,000, unchanged
- North Alabama Agriplex, $100,000, unchanged
- Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO), $575,000, unchanged
- Forest Economic Development Specialist, $200,000, unchanged
- Industrial Hemp Program, $50,000, unchanged
- Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D), $5.85 million, unchanged
- Soil and Water Conservation Committee Program, $3.39 million, up $200,000
- People Against a Littered State (PALS), $200,000, up $50,000
Supplemental Education Trust Fund $2.7 Billion Package
- Rural School Capital Improvements, $150 million
- College and Career Readiness Grants, $10 million
- EARTH Workforce and Innovation Center, $18 million
- Agricultural Center of Innovation, $20 million
- Mainstreet Program, $200 million
- Tax Rebates, $966 million
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From left are Billy Ainsworth, Bob Dumas and Jimmy Rane. | |
Three Confirmed to Auburn University Board of Trustees | |
The Alabama Senate Wednesday confirmed Gov. Kay Ivey's appointments to the Auburn University Board of Trustees. Bob Dumas and Jimmy Rane were reappointed, while Billy Ainsworth was confirmed to his first term on the board. Each will serve seven years.
Alabama Farmers Federation President Jimmy Parnell congratulated the three trustees.
“We congratulate these gentlemen on their confirmations and thank Gov. Kay Ivey for continuing to appoint trustees who appreciate the importance of agriculture and understand Auburn University’s land grant mission to serve the residents of Alabama," he said. "We have enjoyed working with Bob Dumas and Jimmy Rane during their tenure on the board, and we welcome Billy Ainsworth’s perspective and experience as a successful businessman and civic leader.”
Dumas, originally appointed in 2012, is president and CEO of AuburnBank and Auburn National Bancorporation, Inc. He earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a major in finance from Auburn in 1976. Rane has served on the board since 1999. He is chairman, president and CEO of Great Southern Wood Preserving, Inc. Rane, earned his bachelor of science in business administration at Auburn University and went on to earn a doctor of jurisprudence from the Cumberland School of Law of Samford University. Ainsworth, also an Auburn alumnus, served as a leader in the steel initiatives industry for more than 40 years before retiring from Caterpillar, Inc. as group president of Energy and Transportation in 2020.
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Senate Agriculture Committee Holds First Meeting
The Senate Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee held its first meeting under the leadership of Chairman David Sessions, R-Grand Bay, this week. The group enjoyed cans of Alabama-grown peanuts and received "Farming Feeds Alabama" car tags.
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Gov. Kay Ivey Signs Bill Paying Back Alabama Trust Fund
Gov. Kay Ivey was joined by leaders of the Alabama Legislature Thursday as she signed a bill passed during the special session to pay back the remaining $60 million of $437 million borrowed from the Alabama Trust Fund 11 years ago. The signing ceremony fulfilled a promise made by Ivey and legislative leaders.
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House Passes Bill Increasing Penalties for Fentanyl Possession
The Alabama House of Representatives unanimously passed a bill Thursday mandating jail time for possession of one or more grams of pure fentanyl. Fentanyl and other synthetic opioids caused almost 70,000 deaths in the United States in 2021. Gov. Kay Ivey issued a statement supporting the bill. “I’ve instructed ALEA to make combatting this deadly drug a top priority, and I urge our legislators to quickly send HB 1 to my desk, so I can sign it into law,” she said. HB 1 now heads to the Senate Judiciary Committee. The bill's sponsor, Rep. Matt Simpson, R-Daphne, and Speaker of the House Nathaniel Ledbetter, R-Rainsville, spoke to Leading Alabama about the bill. Watch here.
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