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Supporting Our Communities

October 26, 2020

By Scott Brummell
District 5

I hope everyone is having a safe and productive harvest.  2020 has been a challenging year with the combination of a wet spring forcing farmers to plant in less than ideal conditions, to a hot and dry August which really made the planting conditions noticeable.  Overall, farmers are still fortunate with everything else that is going on through COVID-19.  Prices have bounced back more than most people thought they would have in the last few months and yields were better than expected, considering the growing season.

We, as farmers, ask a lot of our communities, whether it be donations from local businesses to help with Ag in the Classroom and food pantry programs, to just being patient when in a hurry and stuck behind the combine going down the road in the fall. With more restrictions being added in many parts of the state for restaurants and other businesses, we need to return the favor and show our communities as much support as we can to help them through this tough time.

Go out to eat at a place where you would not normally go or buy a gift card to use when things get to open back up.  Any support we can show them helps.  Other members of the state Young Leader Committee have recently shared the importance of getting out to vote, and it is also especially important to know the candidates that you are voting for and the policies they support.  Whether it be something simple such as construction projects that need to get done in your county, to stricter EPA regulations that would not allow you to properly care for your farms with tile or fertilizer.  The easiest vote on November 3^rd is to vote NO on progressive tax.  The “fair tax” will only hurt the businesses in our communities we depend on so much.