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Show March 1971 ff .... L)DsDgifDin) by LeGrand Jarman . . . If you have your February issue of Utah Farm Bureau News handy you will be interested in comparing the progress. I. BILLS UTAH FARM BUREAU Uniform motor vehicle amendment. Tabled by Senate and com- mitted to sifting. S.B. 33 Tire Inspection. Killed by Senate. S.B. 216 Drainage S.B. 224 H.B. 68 Tabled by City Annexation. Senate. Committed to sifting. May be brought to calendar. to $7.50. H.B. 130 Noxious Ill BILLS OF FARM INTEREST Weed Act. Passed House. H.J.R. H.B. 48 18 year old vote. Constitutional amendment. Passed both Houses. Will be on ballot in 1972. Campus Unrest and riots. Passed both Houses. Gone to Governor. S.B. 84 1 H.B. 214 Pesticide .Control sed Senate. Act. Pas- S.B. 137 Control revenues to 6 Increase. Will be on calendar No action. soon. S.B. 155 Brand Bill. No action. Will be on calendar soon. S.B. 146 Passed Bill. House. Appears Increase Cigarette Tax S.B. 26 Dairy Promotion Bill. Passed House. Passed Senate - Gone to Governor. Districts. to be a good bill. S.B. 225 WOULD LIKE PASSED: Seed Page 5 UTAH FARM BUREAU Increase auto registration fee S.J.R. 17 Cooperative Program for cational Education Vo- H.B. 172 Sevier Valley Technical School to recognize credits given at this school. Passed House. H.B. 317 Employment of children. No information. H.B. 325 Tax on soft drinks - H.B. 302 Reapportion Utah Legislation. This is required by constitution and uses. recreational year old vote. To solve case and court test. Passed law by House. H.B. 79 18 Water for Amended to be satisfactory. Passed House. Supreme Court. No action. H.B. 19 Reapporation Congressional Districts. Passed both Houses. Puts tax. House. Beer Has Passed by Kane, Garfield, Piute and Wayne good chance of being passed by in District I. Counties, Senate. H.B. 55 H.B. 118 BILLS NEW NOT LISTED IN LAST ISSUE H.B. 279 Occupation tax. Tax on Kenne-co- tt Copper. Passed House, Killed by Senate. H.B. 138 Repeal daylight saving. Will not likely be considered. S.B. 190 School Disruption: Has been rewritten. Provides severe penalties for persons responsible for school disruption. Coop damage by game animals: Still not printed. H.B. 145 Recode fish and game laws: Water chapter rewritten to suit agriculture. Eminent domain deleted. Passed House. S.B. 20 BILLS UTAH FARM BUREAU II. WOULD NOT LIKE PASSED: Air Conservation Act. Rewritten twice. Is in acceptable form. Passed second reading by Senate. H.B. 3 S.B. 62 Repeal Margarine Tax: Passed House, Tabled by Senate. Motor Vehicle Pollution Control: Passed Senate. Killed by House. Resurrected by House and passed. H.B. 6 Comparative Negligence in collision claims: . Passed House, Tabled by Senate H.B. 185 Election of Judges. No action. H.B. 7 S.B. Pollution Nuisance ACT. Killed by House. Insurance In compliance with federal law. Passed Senate. S.B. 108 to 114 Income tax In compliance with Federal law. Passed Senate. S.J.R. 1,2,3,8,9,10, 11 Still on Senate Third Reading table waiting priority. These are constitutional amendments on county government, school districts and structure of legisla- II. B. 14 Make Insurance discounts on claims illegal. Lifted from table by House and passed. Will not likely be considered by Senate. II. B. 15 Income tax exemptions for senior citizens. Tabled by House and committed to sifting. H.B. 186 Agency Shop. Passed House. See articles elsewhere in this pap- er. H.B. 182 No cancellation of Insurance policy. Substitute bill presented. Committee accepted Farm Bureau amendments which makes bill acceptable. S.J.R. 4 93-97-- 99 tion. NEW BILLS LAST ISSUE NOT MENTIONED H.J.R. 16 Constitutional Amendment: Change Secretary of State to Lieutenant Governor and repeal requirement that auditor and Treasurer cannot succeed themselves. Passed House. NEW BILLS SINCE LAST ISSUE H.B. 217 To 'set up anti pollution com- mission with powers. Is in trouble, versity extension range specialist. Its role has been to hold somewhat in check the woody plants such as Juniper or Cedar trees and sagebrush which tend to inrecrease in dry and seml-arl- d water scarce gions and usurp the needed by the food plants eaten by animals. Mother nature has used fires set naturally by lightning to balance the plant cover. This has provided more palatable grasses the gournd cover of grasses has served to hold the soil in place ified for agriculture. REAP Announced by Sec. of Agr. A new Rural Environmental Assistance Program (REAP) for 1971, emphasizing a broad attack on the environmental prob- lems created by the Nation's farming operations, has been announced by Secretary of Agriculture Clifford M. Hardin. H.B. 234 Announcement of the new program, formerly known as the Increase tax on domestic inConservation Program (ACP), permits resumption surance companies. We also think Agricultural of various beneficial conservation of the Federal this is in trouble. practices with farmers, but under a restructured program in H.B. 263 line with modem day needs to better both the on- - and To control use of DDT. We are environment. It makes farmers partners in the venture beapplying a good dose of DDT to tween the Federal government and State, city and local governthis one. ments to deal with the pressing problem of pollution. H.B. 265 The restructured program will be used to help preserve our Labeling DAIRY Products. Back environment, demonstrate good environmental enhancement bill. practices, and return more public benefits at less public cost," we hope. cost-shari- ng off-far- m Secretary Hardin pointed out. Although the specific level of funding for 1971 has not been determined, the 1971 program will be funded, and the Congress will be requested by the Administration to provide funds H.J.R. 13 for the 1972 program, the Secretary said. Constitutional Amendment: Homestead exemption. Would shift Emphasis on the farm side will on those practices contributtax to other property. ing the most to the improvement of conditions for both the general public and farmers. Major considerations in authorizing H.B. 225 Increase optional sales tax by cost sharing of any practice installation will be the resulting 12. No action. public benefits such as pollution abatement, enduring soil and water conservation, recreation, wildlife, and open space as well H.B. 187 as the degree of permanency achieved. As a result, the pracTo charge resource fee with offered under the program have been structured to provide hunting and fishing license. Killed tices by Committee. enduring benefits, significant pollution control, and enhanceH.B. 354 ment of the environment for all. Settlement of insurance claims. A major thrust will be to reduce water pollution which re? New bills, we will oppose. sults in large part from agricultural, industrial and municipal H.B. 157 wastes. Water retaining and retarding measures on farms such to County fiscal operation, reto a build as dams and ponds, permanent grass cover, waterways, buffer permit counties serve fund. Tabled by House strips, and tree plantings will be stressed. These will be directed Committee. toward reducing silt in streams, rivers, lakes and other bodies of water and toward reducing pollution from animal wastes, fertilizers and pesticides. Under the program, the Federal government will pay about 50 percent of the cost of practices that achieve permanent benefits. Practices that provide temporary benefits will be available only under certain circumstances and at a reduced level of Federal cost sharing. Practices that are good farming techniques that should be performed routinely and practices g to the farmer will be that are in favor of those having benefits for all citizens. The program will be run in each county by locally elected farmer committeemen. Under broad Federal and State guidescientific knowledge to the devellines, the committeemen will select the practices best suited and of use certain for meeting the needs of their area; determine which farm opment materials and management practices that selectively control the land needs treatment; and within the countys allocation of funds fix the amount of cost sharing to be provided each farmer. less desirable plants. Encroachment of woody plants Thus, the program provides for a high degree of local deterH.B. 297 Repeal predatory animal law. Killed by House Committee , Plays ffmportem? Pole In ages past fire has played an important role in natures ecology drama on Utah range land, notes Karl G. Parker, Utah State Uni- Senate Bill 224 which is expected to pass the Senate for the purpose of increasing the license fee an additional $5.00 for local governments will be considered for ammendment in the House also and it is desired that an exemption be placed on farm trucks. Contact should be made immediately with the Legislators to obtain support for these two ammednment. The circumstances associated with agriculture for the purpose of open burning and increasing the license fee for trucks are not just- . Range Ecology FflVe Recently Senate Bill 20 pertaining to air pollution passed the Senate and is being considered in the House. It is hoped that the bill could be ammended in the House to include the provision that agricultural burnings should be exempted because of the economic hardships that would result, particularly when such burnings are way below the contamination limits of the federal reguTo be included in the amendment are lations. burnings of tree primings, ditch banks, and heating orchards. and regulate and purify the flow of water that runs off and that percolates through the soil to natural areas. underground storage Man has considered it necessary to control natural fires. As a result, the woody plants have become dominant on tens of thousands of acres of range land in Utah which were once covered with grasses, forbs, shrubs and trees in a mixture more favorable to stream flow and to animals. Fire, then is not always detri- on the watersheds and ranges of Utah presents a detriment to the water wildlife resources, range .. livestock resources, and even to the natural Scientists in the USU beauty. College .of Natural Resources and the Range Science Department are providing information on this and other Important ecology topics. To to mans interests. mental the They may be . contacted locally do the job of enhancing growth of grass, once done naturally through the county extension agents by fire, man has had to apply or extension area coordinators. resources, income-producin- mination. The 1971 program will reflect changes desired by the President and, consistent with a House-Senat- e conference report, will make provision for continuation of 1970 program practices and procedures at the option of county committees. The program will be administered by the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service of the U. S. Department of Agriculture. The Departments Soil Conservation Service, Forest Service and Extension Service will provide technical and educational assistance. |