OFU wants bi-partisan ACA fix that stabilizes marketplaces, protects rural hospitals

COLUMBUS – As the U.S. Senate begins the final week before the deadline to vote on the Graham-Cassidy healthcare bill, the Ohio Farmers Union has joined its national organization in urging a ‘no’ vote on the measure.

Graham-Cassidy would repeal much of the Affordable Care Act – so-called Obamacare – and replace it with a system of block grants to states and language that many say would weaken current law regarding pre-existing conditions and the basic content of health insurance policies.

“Many family farmers in Ohio buy their own health insurance. Before ACA, that meant high premiums, high deductibles and many times very little coverage,” said OFU President Joe Logan.

“While not perfect by any stretch, Obamacare has in fact led to overall better coverage and more lives insured in Ohio.”

“Congress needs to get about the hard work of fixing the healthcare marketplaces and ensuring we don’t backslide on critical issues like protecting those with pre-existing conditions and securing the Medicaid expansion,” Logan said.

The National Farmers Union has deemed any final vote by the Senate on passage of Graham-Cassidy as one that will be scored on the organization’s legislative scorecard.  NFU is also advocating this latest ACA repeal be rejected.

NFU has sent a letter to all members of the Senate on the bill.

[Read more…]

Ohio Farmers Union Event to Hear from Farmers, Provide Farm Bill Briefing

 COLUMBUS – As Congressional committees begin prepping for the 2018 Farm Bill, the Ohio Farmers Union will hold a listening session and briefing in Wilmington on September 18.

The event will be held at the Moyer Community Room, Wilmington Municipal Building, 69 N South St, Wilmington, OH 45177. It will begin at 6:30 p.m. and is expected to last two hours.  The event is open to the public but will he geared to farmers. Light refreshments will be provided by the Clinton County Farmers Union.

“It’s essential that despite the current dysfunction in Washington, Congress crafts a reasonable, responsible Farm Bill that provides a strong safety net,” said OFU President Joe Logan.

Logan said that the National Farmers Union is working with state organizations around the country to hold regional listening sessions where family farmers may come and share thoughts on what’s working and not working with current Farm Bill programs like Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC).

[Read more…]

Ohio Farmers Union Event to Hear from Farmers, Provide Farm Bill Brief

As Congressional committees begin prepping for the 2018 Farm Bill, the Ohio Farmers Union and U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown will hold a listening session and briefing in Fremont on August 29.

The event will be held at Terra State Community College, 2830 Napoleon Rd., Fremont, OH 43420. It will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and attendees will be provided lunch. The event is open to the public but will he geared to farmers. Those who will be attending are asked to RSVP by calling OFU’s state office at 800-321-3671.

“Commodity prices have plummeted over the past four years and forecasts indicate this is a trend that will last into the foreseeable future,” said OFU President Joe Logan.

“It’s essential that despite the current dysfunction in Washington, Congress crafts a reasonable, responsible Farm Bill that provides a strong safety net.”

Logan said that the National Farmers Union is working with state organizations around the country to hold regional listening sessions where family farmers may come and share thoughts on what’s working and not working with current Farm Bill programs like Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC).

[Read more…]

Have you been looking for a fun, engaging way to bring Farmers Union to your community? Why not put on a local OFU coloring contest? Entries will be photographed locally by you and shared. We’ll put together a cool digital display of kids and their creations at the 2018 Ohio Farmers Union Annual Convention in January.

Special thanks goes to Courtney Johnson and the Ashtabula, Geauga, Lake Counties Farmers Union for putting this together.

The Concept

The idea is simple: Participate in a local Farmers Market or other community event by setting up a place where you can meet and greet folks on behalf of Farmers Union. Engage the kids with crayons and pages to color – and introduce their parents to the Farmers Union. For instance, if you have unique local farm and food projects like food councils, CSAs, water quality initiatives or rural concerns, share those stories and ideas and why Ohio Farmers Union is on the side of family farmers and consumers.

How to Do It

You start by downloading the kit below (the zipped file) or by downloading the kit’s files individually. Start with the file “Introduction – Hosting a Farmers Market Coloring Contest.” Courtney did a great job of laying it all out and even providing a checklist to make sure you don’t forget anything. There is a Microsoft Word template for a flyer – or you can make your own – and several coloring blanks geared to different age groups.

The Downloads

• Download Entire Kit as a Zipped Folder
• Introduction – Hosting a Farmers Market Coloring Contest
• Word Template for Contest Flyer
• Coloring Blank – Ages 1 to 4
• Coloring Blank – Ages 2 to 4
• Coloring Blank – Ages 4 to 6
• Coloring Blank – Ages 6 to 9
• Coloring Blank – Ages 10 and Up

Remarks of Roger Wise, Sandusky County Farmers Union President and Treasurer of the Ohio Farmers Union at a field hearing held by U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur on the subject of NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) in Brook Park, Ohio:

Good afternoon. Thank you Rep. Kaptur, Elizabeth of the Citizens
Trade Campaign and President Mark Payne, Local 1250 for hosting this
very timely event about this very important topic.

My name is Roger Wise and I am a 4th generation full-time family
farmer and have been so for more than 40 years. I am here today on
behalf of the Ohio and National Farmrs Union. NFU is the oldest
active farm organization in the country, advocating since 1902. Ohio
has been chartered since 1934. Nationally we represent over 200,000
family farmers and ranchers and fishers. Here in Ohio we tout 2500 of
those members. Four of them are here with me today, Marge and Mardy
Townsend from Astabula County, and of course Congresswoman Kaptur.
The Farmers Union organization works through grassroots driven policy
to improve the well-being and quality of life for family farmers,
ranchers, fishers and rural communities. Each year at our national
fly in we bestow on like minded members of Congress our most
prestigious award, the Golden Triangle. Rep Kaptur has received it
more than 25 years running, more than any other legislator; and we are
grateful for her support.

I remember vividly when then Secretary of Agriculture, Earl Butz
declared the United States would plant “fence row to fence row” and we
would export our nation to prosperity and feed the world along the
way. That 70’s expansion lasted only a few years because American
farmers soon produced massive surpluses, interest rates, inflation and
input costs skyrocketed, prices plummeted and competing countries
developed their own farming techniques. The farm crises of the 80’s
began and lasted for the next 25 years. Farm program payments
accounted for 50% of farm income. The mantra was that profit came in
“economies of scale”, and we must “get big or get out”. Many family
farmers and ranchers did exactly that, some by choice, many by the
force of the bank.

[Read more…]

Congress is beginning to hear testimony on various subjects related to the upcoming 2018 Farm Bill. The National Farmers Union established the weak family farm economy as a point of emphasis last year. Please find below NFU’s recent press release regarding President Roger Johnson’s testimony. What’s happening on your farm? If you participate in ARC, PLC, MPP or other safety net programs, how are they working for your family business? It’s not too early to bring up the importance of the Farm Bill and a better safety net for farmers. Stay tuned here and to the Ohio Farmers Union Facebook page for upcoming announcements about Farm Bill Information and Listening Sessions. Also, consider writing a letter about your farm’s economics and how Farm Bill programs, including conservation measures, impact your ability to continue to farm. If you need assistance in identifying your member of Congress or U.S. Senators and their contact information, let Ron Sylvester know at rcs@ronsylvester.com and he’ll assist you.

from National Farmers Union:

Family farmers and ranchers are enduring a severely depressed farm economy, with projections pointing to a prolonged period of depressed commodity prices. To ensure the growth and success of family farm agriculture, Congress must strengthen the overall farm safety net, National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson told the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture today.

In his oral testimony to the Committee’s hearing on “Commodities, Credit, and Crop Insurance: Perspectives on Risk Management Tools and Trends for the 2018 Farm Bill,” Johnson urged senators to improve the farm bill safety net, protect crop insurance, and improve access to credit.

“We continue to witness pressure in the countryside as commodity prices remain low and farmers and ranchers struggle to adjust,” Johnson told members of the Committee. “We are three years into this downturn, and forecasts by USDA point to a prolonged period of depressed prices. Given this scenario, NFU believes that the farm bill safety net should provide meaningful assistance in two fundamental circumstances: when disaster strikes and when prices are low and remain below the cost of production for extended periods of time. These two scenarios have separate solutions, the first is crop insurance and the second is commodity programs.”

[Read more…]

In between chores and anticipating the coming harvest, many of you are considering the costs of doing business on the farm. Now, through the end of summer, you’ll be receiving information from OFU and CareWorks Comp regarding your on-farm risk management program.

CareWorks Comp is once again partnering with OFU in offering it’s first-class – and affordable – group rating program for workers’ compensation. For every $1 in fees associated with joining CareWorks Comp’s group rating program, Ohio businesses save $11 in BWC Workers Compensation premiums. As a group member you also enjoy the benefits and administrative services of CareWorks Comp.

As a partner with CareWorks Comp, the Ohio Farmers Union also benefits when one of our members joins the program.

If you would like to learn more about CareWorks Comp’s group rating program, visit our BWC Group Coverage page.

If you know right away that you would at least like a quote from CareWorks Comp, follow this link which automatically identifies you as an Ohio Farmers Union member.

As always, thanks for your support of OFU – and for always considering our partners’ quality insurance products when you make decisions affecting your farm, your business and your family!

After several years of tax increases, legislators on verge of providing some relief

COLUMBUS – As state budget negotiators enter the final days of House-Senate budget negotiations, the Ohio Farmers Union reminds legislators that CAUV reforms contained in both versions of the budget are desperately needed – and overdue.

“We’ve been fighting for some meaningful changes in the CAUV formula since around 2012,” said OFU President Joe Logan.

“It’s been a long haul, and along the way farmland property taxes have increased 300 percent or more for family farmers in every corner of Ohio, Logan said.

Logan points out that while farmland property taxes have skyrocketed, other small businesses in Ohio have seen large tax breaks.

“Family farms, which have struggled to generate income in an era of low commodity prices, are perhaps the only small business category that have been taxed more while others’ taxes have decreased over the past three state budgets.”

CAUV, or Current Agricultural Use Valuation, is the way farmland property tax values are determined.

President Donald J. Trump announced earlier this year his intention to weaken and eliminate funding for rural development at USDA as part of a larger ‘re-organization.’

This isn’t selling well with many in rural America.

The National Farmers Union and the Ohio Farmers have joined  joined a coalition of 578 farm and rural organizations, businesses and local governments in sending a letter to Congress pushing back on the administration’s recent budget proposal and proposed reorganization for USDA. The groups urge lawmakers to reject both proposals, as they would eliminate Rural Development as an essential Mission Area of USDA and cut Rural Development funding and staffing by 30 percent and 20 percent, respectively.

Let’s start with what USDA Rural Development programs mean to Ohio.

The Avita Health System facility in Ontario, Ohio, just west of Mansfield in Richland County recently opened. It brought 350 jobs to the area and according to USDA, Avita Ontario will serve the health care needs of around 125,000 north-central Ohioans.

It would not have happened without USDA Rural Development.

Avita Ontario got $91 million in Community Facilities loan funding to repurpose nearly 200,000 square feet of abandoned retail space. Inpatient hospital services, an emergency department and labs are among the features at Avita Ontario.

Rural Development dollars in Ohio for FY 2016 included (among others):

• $53.6 million in rural electrification loans or guarantees
• Nearly $500 million in single-family housing lending in rural areas
• $44.5 million in waste and water district lending in rural areas

“The administration’s proposals do not sit well with family farmers and rural residents who benefit tremendously from the work of USDA Rural Development,” said NFU President Roger Johnson. “While we appreciate Secretary’s Perdue’s heightened interest in rural economic development, President Trump’s proposed budget does not align with this interest. In fact, the budget proposal and proposed USDA reorganization bring the long-term viability of USDA RD into question.”

The coalition letter noted that for more than 50 years, USDA rural development programs have improved housing, utilities and community facilities, and economic opportunity for rural America. In fiscal year 2016 alone, USDA made available more than $29 billion in loans, guarantees, grants, and related assistance to over 157,000 individuals, businesses, non-profit corporations, cooperatives, and governments.

Yet there is still much work to be done in rural America, the coalition argued.

According an analysis of socio-economic well-being prepared by the Wall Street Journal, rural counties in America are in worse condition than big cities, suburbs and small or medium metro areas. Rural communities, and the people who live in them, have higher poverty and unemployment rates as well as a higher incidence of substandard housing and rent overburden when compared to metropolitan areas.

Despite this information, the Trump Administration proposed:

• Eliminating funding for two dozen housing and rural development programs.
• Rescinding USDA’s responsibility to provide direct rural housing loans, grants for mutual and self-help housing, financing for water and waste disposal systems, or loans and grants to small rural businesses, cooperatives, and value added producers.
• Reducing funding for many other programs under Rural Development well below their current rate.

“What will be left is a hollowed-out Rural Development function, degraded within the Department with far fewer resources to help rural America,” the coalition noted. “We urge the (Appropriations) Committee to reject the Administration’s FY 18 budget and reorganization proposals for Rural Development and instead provide appropriations at no less than the current rate and maintain the Rural Development mission area and position of Under Secretary for Rural Development.”

[Read more…]