Dean Dan Bernardo on WSU Extension and the budget

Washington Ag Today May 5, 2009 Part of Washington State University's proposed plan to meet reduced funding from the state is a 20 percent cut for WSU Extension. But Dan Bernardo, Dean of the College of Agriculture, Human and Natural Resource Sciences, says farmers and ranchers shouldn't really see much impact from the reduced funding for WSU Extension. Bernardo: "Really this should have very little impact on Extension as Extension serving production agriculture. This plan really leaves the county faculty in place for all intents and purposes. And with respect to county faculty with ag commitments there is no reduction at all. There is no reduction in terms of CAHNRS faculty who are in agricultural programs. So again on the Extension side, I think we have done a pretty good job of protecting the limited resources that we do have available allocated to ag." But Dean Bernardo has this warning. Bernardo: "I'll be frank. We cannot afford anymore reductions in Extensions funds allocated to agriculture. We need increases." I'm Bob Hoff and that's Washington Ag Today on the Northwest Ag Information Network.