07/25/06 WSU preparing legislative funding request

Washington Ag July 25, 2006 Washington State University is preparing a major funding request for the next legislative session for the College of Agricultural, Human and Natural Resource Sciences. CAHNERS Dean Dan Bernardo told a field day early this summer it will be significant, a 10 to 12 million dollar biennial request. Bernardo: "We are asking for funding to bring new operating dollars into our system in the research and extension. We are asking for dollars to fund some key positions which have been vacated due to resignations and retirements and have not beef filled. Then we are asking for some dollars to hire new positions in some core areas, emerging areas like biofuels. So we can indeed compete with the world really in these type of emerging areas." Bernardo says it will be important for all of agriculture to stick together to support that funding request. Bernardo: "We all know the numbers out there in terms of this state and the percentages of urban versus rural, etc. But if we all stick together we believe can be successful." I'm Bob Hoff.