Article from the November, 2007 Georgia Farm Bureau NEWS magazine

GFB PD Committee prepares policy for convention

After a kickoff in early August, the Georgia Farm Bureau policy development process is nearing its culmination at our annual convention on Jekyll Island, December 2-4.

The GFB Commodity Advisory Committees considered policy at the Commodity Conference, August 7-8. During the month of September, county chapters were urged to study our policy and current ag issues and submit resolutions. Sixty-eight counties answered the call and submitted more than 340 resolutions.

The GFB Policy Development Committee is responsible for studying these resolutions and putting them into a document to be considered by the voting delegates at convention. The committee consists of 70 Farm Bureau members from across the state who serve as either county presidents, commodity advisory committee chairmen, or as GFB directors.

The committee’s first meeting, October 10-11, was to allow it to do the preliminary work of combining the resolutions into a workable format. Another meeting was held, October 31-November 1, to make additional changes and to formally recommend the new document to the delegate body.

The issues discussed covered a wide variety of subjects, but three main topics were paramount: Georgia state tax reform, water, and immigration.

The most controversial subject was Georgia state tax reform. Almost every county Farm Bureau that submitted policy resolutions sent a resolution on this issue, and the opinions varied greatly. Current Georgia Farm Bureau policy supports alternatives to property taxes, but only if all agricultural sales tax exemptions are retained. Our policy also calls for local administrative control.

Current legislation being considered by the General Assembly would eliminate all property taxes - an interesting concept for landowners. However, the same legislation would eliminate most sales tax exemptions - a problematic idea for many farmers. The reform under consideration also changes the authority of local governments to levy taxes, which causes some Farm Bureau members to think twice.

During the last meeting of the PD Committee, Dr. Jeffrey Dorfman, University of Georgia Department of Agricultural & Applied Economics professor, presented a study, requested by Georgia Farm Bureau, about the potential impact of the tax reform plan on Georgia farmers. The study used hypothetical farms representative of row crop, dairy, cattle and poultry farms across Georgia.

All farms in the study were assumed to be under the conservation use value covenant. The numbers suggested that moderate-sized farms with high feed, seed, fertilizer, chemical, or equipment costs would fare poorly under the proposed plan. Very large farms or farms outside the conservation use covenant in high value areas would see greater benefits as would farms with lower per acre input costs.

The study shows that if all farm sales tax exemptions are eliminated, along with all property taxes, most timberland owners would benefit. The study suggests non-irrigated row crop farms may benefit if some portion of the sales tax exemptions are retained for seed, fuel, fertilizer, and chemicals. Farms with high input costs, such as farms producing tobacco, irrigated row crops, or fruit & vegetable crops, will probably be better off with the current tax structure.

However, Dorfman also noted the tax reform proposal is still being formulated. Future changes in the plan could drastically alter its effect on farmers.

The GFB Policy Development Committee decided to recommend some room for negotiation. The committee stated “GFB leadership should have leeway in negotiating for its members.” The committee also urged local control of tax revenue.

With the drought and the publication of the Statewide Comprehensive Water Management Plan, most county Farm Bureaus submitted resolutions on water issues. Most water resolutions reaffirmed Georgia Farm Bureau’s current policy.

The resolutions included a call for farmer participation in the regional water planning entities outlined in the water plan. Current law vests much authority in the director of the Environmental Protection Division of the Department of Natural Resources. In their resolutions, county Farm Bureaus expressed concern with that arrangement and called for a more decentralized system.

Immigration resolutions sparked considerable debate within the committee. The committee stressed the need for secure borders and demanded immigrants be governed by our laws. At the same time, they recognized the positive contributions made by immigrants and acknowledged the vital role they play in agriculture.

The committee called for an immigration reform package that would streamline and improve the H-2A program and allow undocumented workers to earn adjustment to legal status. The committee opposed the proposal by the Department of Homeland Security to require employers to become de facto immigration enforcement entities through the proposed “no-match letter” rules.

The last meeting of the Policy Development Committee will be an open meeting at 3:30 p.m., December 2, in Hartley Auditorium at the Jekyll Island Convention Center. On December 4, the delegates will consider the final policy document for ratification.


BY: Jon Huffmaster, legislative director, & Jeffrey Harvey, assistant director of the GFB Legislative Department.