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The 2012 Oklahoma Farm Bureau delegate session was held on Saturday as a part of their annual convention and trade show- 398 delegates showed up to do the work of approving policy for the coming year for the organization. The wide ranging discussion covered everything from support for acts of patriotism such as the performance of the National Anthem or the Pledge to the Flag at the start of public events to a call to reduce the budget for the EPA by fifty percent.


Perhaps the most passionate discussion came over water rights within the state of Oklahoma. The Resolutions Committee proposed a resolution on the sale of water in Oklahoma that read "Water in Oklahoma from any source( well, river, creek, spring, pond, lake, etc) shall always remain in Oklahoma and may not be sold out of state without the approval of the House and Senate." Delegates from southeast Oklahoma proposed amendments that would have been more specific as they wanted to name the Sardis Watershed and put the stipulation in that no water sale outside of the basin where the water is located may be completed unless approved by a vote of the residents of that water basin. A second delegate also mentioned that water from Hugo Lake was a commodity that several Texas cities had inquired about as well. After a lively debate, the delegates voted down the amendments and approved the original language as recommended by the Resolutions Committee.


Another resolution having to do with flood control dams was inserted into the Oklahoma Farm Bureau policy book- this resolution was amended and reads as follows- "The State and Federal governments shall be required to maintain their flood control projects, at their expense." Delegates amended this resolution to call on the governments involved to pay for the upkeep of these flood control structures, many of which are reaching the end of their useful life- unless they are renovated. 

You can read more about the delegate session at the 2012 Oklahoma Farm Bureau convention- just click here.  

US Wheat Faces International Office Closures If Farm Bill Remains Stalled 

Dan Hughes raises hard red and hard white winter wheat as well as corn, soybeans, and dry, edible beans on his farm in Venango, Nebraska. He is also vice-chairman of U.S. Wheat Associates.  He says the stalled 2012 Farm Bill  could have serious affects on foreign market development funds if it is not passed soon.

"U.S. Wheat Associates is an organization of 19 states that produce wheat in the United States that collect checkoff. And we take those checkoff dollars and we leverage those to get additional dollars from the government through grants and awards. And those are the dollars we use to fund our overseas operations which consist of 19 offices around the world.

"To staff those offices, we put people in there to help the buyers of United States wheat. We help them acquire the wheat. We help them line up the shipping. We help them, once they get it, mill it. We help them blend the flour to bake the product that they need.

Some programs are out of money with the lapse of the 2008 farm bill. Other programs will lose funding authorization at the end of the year. How will that affect those U.S. Wheat offices overseas?

"We've basically got enough money to operate through the end of January. And after that, if we don't have a farm bill in place with the authorization for these FMD and MAP funds, we'll have to start shutting down our overseas offices."

To read more, click here.

Lame Duck Session Fraught With Potential Perils for Ag Sector, AFBF's Mary Kay Thatcher Says

When Congress comes back for the lame duck session there will be a lot on their plates. Budget considerations top that list as does the Farm Bill. Both are intertwined and have broad-reaching implications for the future of ag producers.

Mary Kay Thatcher is a lobbyist in the Washington D.C. office of the American Farm Bureau Federation. She recently visited with me about what has to be done in Congress to move the Farm Bill forward while at the same time keeping an eye toward budget cuts and sequestration. She said there are a number of key issues Congress members will be looking at- and unfortunately for agricultural interests- the farm bill is not close to the top of the list.

Thatcher does see a chance to get a five year farm bill done, if the Republican leadership will get behind Congressman Lucas and allow him to run his bill without being swept away by a huge wave of amendments. At some point, if the Congressional Leadership does not schedule time for the bill- a push will have to be made to get a short term extension to the recently expired farm law to mitigate negative impacts in multiple programs after the first of January.


That would push Farm Bill action into 2013- a time when there will be less money to write new policy with.

  

Stabenow Says Farm Bill Action Could Overcome Congressional Gridlock

Sen. Debbie Stabenow, Chairwoman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, released the following statement on continuing and finalizing the farm bill process in the lame duck session:

"Americans could not be more clear that now that the election is over, they want us to work together to create jobs and reduce the deficit. If Congress can work together to pass the Farm Bill, it will create the trust and momentum we need to overcome gridlock and solve the challenges our country faces. Passing a bipartisan Farm Bill that reduces the deficit by $23 billion is a significant first step in meeting the critical deficit reduction challenges our country must face head-on this year."

 

NCBA Lobbyist Sees No Chance for Tax Reform After Tuesday's Election Results

The general elections have come and gone and Colin Woodall, lead lobbyist for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, says the outcome hasn't changed a thing.

"I think it's summed up by this: billions of dollars were spent to get the exact same thing we've basically had for two years. That's what it boils down to. Even though we're going to see some new faces, party control didn't change that much. So I think the exact same dynamic we've been dealing with for the past two years is what's going to lead us into those first two years of this next Congress and the next administration of President Obama.

"Unfortunately, for us, it means we can't expect much in the way of real reform on things like taxes and the endangered species act."

He  also said there is a lot of concern that the Obama victory means the EPA will have free rein.

Woodall joins us on the latest Beef Buzz.  Click here for more.

 

USDA Releases Latest Supply and Demand Numbers

USDA released the latest Supply and Demand numbers, including U.S. and World Production on Friday. The report pushed soybean prices sharply lower, corn just a couple of pennies down and wheat off by ten to sixteen cents a bushel in the trading session on Friday. 

In part, the NASS update indicated that, "Corn production is forecast at 10.7 billion bushels, up slightly from the October forecast but down 13 percent from 2011. This represents the lowest production in the United States since 2006. Based on conditions as of November 1, yields are expected to average 122.3 bushels per acre, up 0.3 bushel from the October forecast but 24.9 bushels below the 2011 average. If realized, this will be the lowest average yield since 1995. Area harvested for grain is forecast at 87.7 million acres, unchanged from the October forecast and up 4 percent from 2011."

Friday's update added that, "Soybean production is forecast at 2.97 billion bushels, up 4 percent from October but down 4 percent from last year. Based on November 1 conditions, yields are expected to average 39.3 bushels per acre, up 1.5 bushels from last month but down 2.6 bushels from last year. Compared with last month, yield forecasts are higher or unchanged across all States except for Oklahoma and Texas. Area for harvest in the United States is forecast at 75.7 million acres, unchanged from October and up 3 percent from last year."

Tom Leffler of Leffler Commodities breaks down the latest numbers on our home page.  Click here to listen to his analysis and to access a link to the full USDA Supply and Demand Report.

Weekend Rainfall Fairly Widespread- We Have Got the Map

Rainfall totals maxed out at slightly more than one inch in several locations across central and eastern Oklahoma from the rains of this weekend. The Pryor Mesonet station recorded 1.18 inches of rain, most of any Mesonet station in the state, while the Panhandle got no rain from this much anticipated system. Coverage in the larger wheat producing counties ranged from an inch down to just a few hundredths of an inch of rainfall.


With this system exiting the state on Sunday afternoon- the next chance of rainfall appears to be next weekend. The hope is that those areas that got rain will find those fairly light rainfall amounts will help sustain the wheat crop for a few days longer.

Click here to check out the Mesonet map to see who got what over the last couple of days.