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Show Volume XIV Number 13 Legislature SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH To Tackle Green belt Lawmaking The Utah legislature, meeting for the first time since the 1967 session, began proceedings January 13th. Business is expected to move quickly on a crowded d bills in the hopper as a first for the Utah calendar, due to a number of pre-file- lawmaking body. High on the list of items to be considered will be the "Greenbelt" law to be written followvoter ing approval of an amendment to the state constitution in November. The amendment to the constitution states simply that land may be valued for taxation on some basis other than market value. LeGrand Jarman, Field Services Director for the Utah Farm Bureau, has been busy with members of the Utah Agricultural Landowners Association, officials of the Tax Commission and other interested people, drafting thoughts on the legislation. A proposed law was suggested at a December 19th meeting of the Tax Commission and the House Committee on Revenue and Taxation. The provisions include: Land to qualify for the reduced valuation would have to be not less than five acres in size, with a gross production of at least $500 a year and must have been used for agricultural purposes for five years or more. Taxable valuation would be fixed on a basis of production capability. An advisory committee on farmland valuations would consist of representatives of Utah State University, the Utah Agricultural Land-owneAssociation and the Tax Commission. No more than five classifications of agricultural lands for valuation purposes would be established. In the event agricultural lands are sold for other purposes, their valuation for tax purposes would be increased for the last five years on a basis of the actual sales price. This would tend to discourage speculation. The actual introduction of the bill has not been set since drafting has rs not been completed. Mr. Jarman pointed out that, "We still have some work to do on the law. We want to have a law that will be satisfactory for the future. A hastily drafted law could be a real detriment to the whole program." Other legislation of interest to farmers will be considered by the law- making body. Included are a farm truck license law and an effort to repeal the sales tax provisions on items used in production of commodities on the farm. Shuman invites mayor to visit areas of California grape-growin- g Charles B. Shuman, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, has written to Mayor Richard Daley of Chicago offering to pay the mayors expenses to fly to Delano, California, and view actual living. and working conditions of table grape workers.. Shumans offer came as the result of the mayors action last month in ordering city institutions not to buy California table grapes. The mayor announced his action in a wire to local labor unions. In his letter to Mayor Daley, Shuman pointed out that he had written the mayor on October 31, asking that, before the mayor took any action on the grape boyHere is the letter which Shuman sent to Chicago's mayor: cott, the Farm Bureau be per"Dear Mayor Daley: mitted to present the growers' side of the dispute. "On behalf of the farm families of America I want to protest your action in endorsing the grape boycott. Apparently you By ordering city institutions do not accept the information on working conditions and wages not to buy California grapes, the is paid to grape workers which I gave to you in my letter of endorsing the boycott. mayor October 31. Therefore, I am inviting you at our expense to go Such action is not fair to consumers, grape growers, or the to California to see for yourself that this grape boycott is grape pickers of California, who based on false charges and is merely an attempt to compel will be out of jobs next year if growers to force workers to join the union against their will. the boycott succeeds, Shuman 'Chicago is the agricultural capital of America. If a small said. group of power seeking zealots can deny consumers the right to choose wnat food they buy, the agricultural industry which MAYOR DALEY reveals his means so much to Chicago is in danger. lack of knowledge of the true "I hope you will accept my invitation to see for yourself. We facts in the California grape boywill be glad to make arrangements for a fact finding visit with cott when he stated that 'We believe in the principle that workgrape workers as well as growers. I am sure that you want to be fair and to consider the facts on both sides of this coning men and women should be troversy. paid wages that will permit them "Yours sincerely, to support their families with a "Charles B. Shuman, President" decent standard of living. Delano grape pickers earned an average of between $2 and regulating the employment of farm workers. $2.12 per hour during the 1967 season. More experienced workThere is a minimum waee ers earned $2.50 per hour. currently of $1.65 per hour Average earning of Delano grape higher than the federal $1.60 per pickers are higher than average hour minimum for industrial earnings of U.S. farm workers. workers. All California farm workers Workers who are employed nearly have incomes in the must be covered by workmens year-roun- d and insurance compensation range of $5,000 to $6,000. insurance. in workmens disability THE GRAPE PICKERS FARM LABOR housing for the Delano area are not migrants. those' who do not rent or own more the Nearly 90 percent of than 5,000 pickers hired at the their homes is strictly regulated. peak of the harvest in Delano The transportation of farm workare residents of the area and ers is subject to enforced safety many own their own homes, and regulations.' their children attend local schools. "The State Labor Code of The United Farm Workers California recognizes the right of which every worker including farm Committee, Organizing called the grape boycott, pictures workers to organize and barDelano grape pickers as migrants gain collectively. These facts Mayor Daley can homeless wanderers completely at the mercy of their employers. check for himself personally in THE FACTS are that there Delano, California, at our exare many state laws in California pense, if he is interested. esm WE SYMPATHIZE with who must be consumers Chicago confused by the union propaganda and by the action of Jewel, National, A&P Food Stores, and High-LoFoods, who have removed grapes from their shelves because their executives said they feared for the personal safety of their employees and customers s, from threatened disorders, and harrassment ' from the union pickets. It is indeed unfortunate that Chicago consumers cannot buy grapes at these stores during the Christmas season because of the hoodlum tactics of a union led by Cesar Chavez who received his training under the revolutionary Saul Alinsky. The facts in the grape boycott, as reported by Allan Grant, a member of our board and president of the California Farm Bureau Federation, and a mem- w sit-in- Elmo W. Hamilton, center, received a plaque honoring Utah as a quota state and for outstanding local affairs activity. Utah was one of five 2 star award states - Other FB presidents receiving 2 star awards are from left: O. Joseph Penuel, Deleware; Lloyd Sommer-ville- , Colorado; Robert Delano, Virginia; James Graugnard, Louisiana. UFB Wins 2 Star Awards Award at the 50th The Utah Farm Bureau was presented a Federation durBureau Farm of the American Convention Anniversary achievement in local award The December. recognized outstanding ing state bureau. farm a as of achievement well the as as affairs activity quota 2-S- tar This marks the fourth year in a row that Utah has received a Gold Star Award and the third consecutive year that the UFB has received a quota award. In 1965 Utah was recognized as the best Women's program in group 2 (for states with membership from 5,000 to 19,999). In 1966 Utah received the group 2 star for Citizenship and in 1967 for National Legislative Affairs. Receiving the award, Elmo W. Hamilton, UFB president expressed award appreciation for the effort of so many members who made the Green-belt we the did in the work of as a comes result award "This possible. for state our to been made have it except and wouldn't campaign, the terrific amount of work done by the people in the counties. I'm proud to be associated with so many dedicated farm and ranch people." Mr. Hamilton said. ber of the board of regents of the University of California, are these: The nationwide boycott of all California grapes perpetrated by the United Farm Workers Organizing Committee was invoked because of an alleged strike against just one grower Giu-marVineyards . Corporation, owning and operating vineyards in the Delano arta. THIS ACTION immediately affected all the states. 3,355 grape growers growers who had no part in the argument between Giumarra and the UFWOC. Yet these growers were threatened with the loss of their crop and a years income because of the boycott of all California grapes. The average size table grape vineyard in California is 31.7 acres. ra Neither wages, working conditions, nor fringe benefits were at issue. Nor is the issue the workers right to decide whether or not they wanted a union to represent them or to chose a union. The sole purpose of the boycott is to force grower recognition of the UFWOC and to order their workers to join the union. The grape pickers in the Delano area, in spite of harrassment and intimidation for four years, have refused to ioin the UFWOC. The UFWOC has a total membership in California of less than two percent of all farm workers in the state, largely of workers picking grapes for wineries, or about 2,000 pickers. to the imCONTRARY pression given by the UFWOC that it is a little group fighting giant corporations, it is estimated that UFWOC has available between $500,000 and $1,000,000 per year for its organizing efforts. The Delano grape growers are the sons and daughters of immigrants who came to America one or two generations ago from Armenia, Italy, Yugoslavia, and other grape growing nations. They arrived penniless in the late 1920s and 1930s, took any job they could find, pooled their savings, bought land, and planted vines. Today they have some of the finest grape producing vineyards in California. n o X o cj3 JC z az zu S3 D u X fid ua & D aI Sw IA x a H o h z a 0 tN VO |