HOME	MEMBERSHIP	OFFICERS & STAFF	POLICY	SAGE SIGNALS	CALENDAR	COFFEE SHOP
	JOIN NCA	LEGISLATURE	CONVENTION	BULL SALE	RAFFLE	LINKS

January 2010

Association Keeping Watch On Many Important Industry Issues

Preparations Underway For Fallon All Breeds Bull Sale

 

by Meghan Brown

Winter has finally arrived in Nevada, the cool weather and white flakes have fallen from the sky and blanket the soil with much needed moisture. With winter comes hibernation for some, while others find themselves working harder than ever. The Nevada Cattlemen’s office is one of those places. The office has been in full swing since convention working hard on the Fallon Bull Sale.

As has been tradition for the past 44 years the Nevada Cattlemen’s Association has started out the New Year with the Fallon All Breeds Bull Sale. This year the sale will be held February 20th at 11:30 at the Fallon Livestock Exchange. As in years past, the sale will present buyers with quality bulls that are range-ready.

The office has been dedicated to the promotion and production of the sale for several months, working closely with Chris Gansburg, the chairman of the Fallon Bull Sale Committee, to make sure to make the best sale for both our consignors and buyers.

Although the office has been dedicated to the bull sale, there are several issues that the office is continuing to keep an eye on including grazing, public land issues, and wildlife. The Association uses policy to support the direction of our lobbyist, President, Executive Director, and the advice that we give to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. With each president a new emphasis comes to the association. However the policy of the association is the backbone and guides the overall direction of NCA. The strong policy that we have guilds our future actions, comments on federal land actions, and policies and decisions that come from Washington.

With hot button issues such a water, wild horses, estate taxes, and energy development, the volunteer leadership of the association has been working to make sure your voice is heard. At meetings such as the Nevada Board of Agriculture, National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board, Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative Annual Meeting, the 2009 Conference on Wild & Feral Horse and Burro Management and Policy, and many other regional and national meetings association leadership have represented your voice. At many of these meetings ideas and values are shared about the future of the industry. For a state like ours to be part of those important discussions we rely on our volunteer leadership.

There are both state and national issues that face the industry. One national issue that has come to the surface again this year is the Clean Water Act. However with as much energy as it surfaced it was put aside: In a brief Dec. 10 interview with Inside EPA, Oberstar says passing the bill in 2009 “was our goal but we still don’t have a common agenda with the Senate, and I still have to work on House members . . . my goal is to get on it early in the next session.”

The bill faces massive political difficulties in the House, including enjoying less support now than in the last Congress, when 175 of Oberstar’s House colleagues signed on their support.

Key critics are welcoming Oberstar’s concession. “Poor ideas with arbitrary deadlines have a tendency to slip past in this place, and I’m glad that’s what’s happening,” Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT), the chair of the Congressional Western Caucus, said in a Dec. 10 interview. “The opposition to this bill is going to be very big, and it’s going to be very real, and it’s going to be very intense.”

With leadership in the House making statements such as Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT), there will be an uphill battle for the Clean Water Act passage.

Nevada Cattlemen’s Association works hard on many issues. We are looking to you to help make this association strong. If there are issues that you feel we need to be addressing or you want to learn about please don’t hesitate to contact the office or another member. We want to work for you and your needs.

 

RETURN TO TOP OF PAGE