05/04/07 A wrap on 2007 Washington legislative session and spuds

Farm and Ranch May 4, 2007 With the 2007 session of the Washington Legislature now history, how did issues of interest to the Washington State Potato Commission fare? The most important appropriation the Commission supported was Washington State University's Unified Agriculture Initiative. WSU got six million of the 10.8 million it requested, which will help establish an internal grants program for research and also allow the hiring of key faculty in critical plant programs. WSU lobbyist Larry Ganders says initially neither chamber of the legislature provided the 700-thousand plus dollars needed to maintain the new research facility at Mount Vernon. Ganders: 'However, fortunately in the final conference committee report we were successful in securing funding for that." Agriculture didn't get its permanent exemption from new regulation under Critical Area Ordinances but lawmakers did pass a three-year time out on new rules which will include discussions at the Ruckelhaus Center. Last year farmers got a sales tax exemption on farm machinery replacement parts and this year lawmakers extended that to separately itemized charges for labor and services for installing replacement parts. Numerous anti-pesticide measures failed to pass but the budget adopted included funding for a pilot pesticide drift monitoring project. Stolen metal property was a hard fought issue for lawmakers pitting victims like agriculture against scrap metal businesses but a bill passed requiring new documentation requirements on transactions and stiffer penalties for violators. That's the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report. Brought to you in part by the Washington State Potato Commission. Nutrition today! Good health tomorrow! I'm Bob Hoff on the Northwest Ag Information Network.