A group of 50 Oklahoma Farm Bureau leaders took time out from preparing for the spring growing season to travel to Washington, D.C. for an intense lobbying effort, March 26-31.
“This is a valuable trip for farm leaders,” said Mike Spradling, OFB president. “It shows our Oklahoma congressional delegation we support them and it gives our members an opportunity to see how the federal government functions.”
During the trip, the farm leaders met with Senators Inhofe and Coburn, plus all five U.S. House members from Oklahoma, including Frank Lucas, the new chairman of the House Agriculture Committee.
“Lucas will play a major role in the new farm bill and we’re glad he understands how important the farm bill is for Oklahoma agriculture,” Spradling said.
Lucas laid out the time table for the new farm bill, making sure the leaders understood the current farm bill does not expire until end of July, 2012. He told the group he expects field hearings on the farm bill to take place this summer and hopes to have the farm bill written and ready for the president to sign by next July.
For Farm Bureau leader Jack Sherry, Holdenville, the trip was a good opportunity to see Congress in action.
“The big discussion going on right now in Washington is the tight budget situation,” Sherry said. “I am concerned how it will impact the farm bill and the non-farm economy as well.”
In addition to the farm bill and budget discussions, the farm leaders also discussed burdensome EPA regulations with their congressional representatives.
“We’ve seen a growing list of attempts by the EPA in recent years to heavily regulate the agriculture industry,” Spradling said. “We’re concerned these regulations are becoming a major obstacle to producing food and fiber in this country.”
