April 18th the bill passed off the floor of the House, and is now in the Senate.
We need a hearing in Senate Ways and Means. Senator Andy Hill is the Chair of Senate Ways and Means. Please email Senator Hill at andy.hill@leg.wa.gov and request a hearing in Ways and Means.
Email the Thurston County delegation and let them know this is an important step and good for Thurston County. Ask them to talk to Senator Andy Hill and get the bill scheduled for a hearing in Senate Ways and Means.
Email all of the members of Senate Ways and Means asking them to support the bill.
Their names and email addresses:
As always, it is most important to:
1. If you belong to an organization, please ask them to support.
2. Please contact your legislators. If you don’t know your district, check here.
Tell them this is important to you and the community.
3. Ask your farmers markets to support. Draw connections.
4. Please contact your county commissioners and county executive. They all support farmland preservation. This is a wonderful way to preserve farmland and keep small farmers working the land. Ask for their support. You can tell them this is a sound investment. It keeps farmers on their land, farming the land, producing agricultural products for their communities. Small farmers are the emerging trend in the local farm economy. We need to modernize the tax code to reflect this.
5. Share this webpage http://weneedsmallfarms.wordpress.com/ with your friends. Forward to farmers you know, grocers, restaurants, local papers.
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Here are lists of email addresses – easy to mail to. I’ve tested them and they work. Also an updated link to the House Ag Committee page.
** Senate Ag committee members (except one sponsor of SB5327) – ask for their support:
Brian.Hatfield@leg.wa.gov, Jim.Honeyford@leg.wa.gov, Jerome.Delvin@leg.wa.gov, Tracey.Eide@leg.wa.gov, Mark.Schoesler@leg.wa.gov, Paull.Shin@leg.wa.gov
** House Ag committee members (except several sponsors of HB1437) – ask for their support:
Brian.Blake@leg.wa.gov, Bruce.Chandler@leg.wa.gov, Drew.MacEwen@leg.wa.gov, Vincent.Buys@leg.wa.gov, Hans.Dunshee@leg.wa.gov, Christopher.Hurst@leg.wa.gov, Joel.Kretz@leg.wa.gov, Eric.Pettigrew@leg.wa.gov, Joe.Schmick@leg.wa.gov, Derek.Stanford@leg.wa.gov, Judy.Warnick@leg.wa.gov
http://www.leg.wa.gov/House/Committees/AGNR/Pages/MembersStaff.aspx
** Sponsors of SB5327 and HB1437 – thank them for their support:
Chris.Reykdal@leg.wa.gov, Kathy.Haigh@leg.wa.gov, Ed.Orcutt@leg.wa.gov, Kristine.Lytton@leg.wa.gov, Kevin.VanDeWege@leg.wa.gov, Hans.Zeiger@leg.wa.gov, Karen.Fraser@leg.wa.gov, Steve.Hobbs@leg.wa.gov, Randi.Becker@leg.wa.gov
Testimony at hearings:
Thank you for considering these bills. I urge you to approve them. They can make a positive difference for small farmers like us, and for food security in Thurston County and WA State.
My partner and I both work full time at regular jobs, and our family runs a small organic farm in the Tumwater Urban Growth Area. We raise organic grass-fed beef and pastured poultry. This is labor intensive, with very low net income. We are committed to it because it produces healthy meat, sustainably and humanely. Each acre of our farm yields enough premium quality meat for one local family per year.
Taxes are our biggest expense, more than feed or fencing. Passage of these bills could really help us. For a small farm on a tight margin, relief of a few hundred dollars can mean well over 10% percent of yearly expenses, and for some it could be the difference between continuing and quitting farming.
Small farms are the fastest growing segment of agriculture in Thurston County and the State of Washington. It is crucial to sustain our network of local food providers, as we prepare for worsening impacts of climate change.
Global warming is already disrupting crop production in the nation’s breadbasket – for example, last year’s droughts and heat wave decimated Midwest wheat, corn, and soybeans. We are lucky to have ample water and farmland in Thurston County – so far. Increasing temperatures and longer growing seasons are making it possible to raise new crops around Puget Sound – if farmers can afford to innovate. Thank you for passing these bills to help local farmers stay in business, and to support WA State into the future.
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I must thank you for the efforts you have put in writing this blog.
I’m hoping to view the same high-grade blog posts by you later on as well. In truth, your creative writing abilities has inspired me to get my own website now
I am glad it like it. My goal is to make it effective. We are taking a month break, then will be back at building the coalition and will approach the 2014 legislature.
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Top post. I look forward to reading more. Cheers
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