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| Date: | March 22, 2011 | | Contact Name: | Chris Van Guilder | | Contact Phone: | 651-296-1388 | | Contact Email: | christopher.vanguilder@senate.mn | | For Immediate Release | |
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| SENATE AGRICULTURE AND RURAL ECONOMIES COMMITTEE PASSES FY2012-13 BUDGET LEGISLATION |
St. Paul – Members of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Rural Economies took a significant step toward a balanced state budget on Tuesday, passing their omnibus budget bill for FY2012-13. The bill passed out of the committee and will be sent to the Senate Finance Committee for further review and inclusion in the final budget bill.
Senate Republicans set a self-imposed deadline of March 25 for passage of all individual committee budget bills. The Senate Agriculture Committee released budget appropriations last week, held committee hearings, gathered public testimony and passed the budget bill on time.
Committee Chairman Doug Magnus (R-Slayton) stated after final passage, “In tough economic times, we need to focus on our priorities and the key mission of each area of government. The budget we passed today does just that. As any farmer, agriculture leader, researcher or advocate will tell you, you cannot have a strong Minnesota without a strong agriculture economy. Knowing this, it was vital that we protect our livestock and grain industries, protect our food supply system, and continue to support our export programs.”
The Senate Agriculture Committee passed net General Fund spending of $76,840,000, approximately $1 million less than the Governor’s proposed spending level. The three major areas that compose the overall agriculture budget include: Department of Agriculture, Animal Health Board, and the Agricultural Utilization Research Institute.
Commodity advocacy groups, representatives from the Department of Agriculture, Minnesota Farm Bureau, Minnesota Farmers Union, Board of Animal Health and others offered testimony during committee deliberations.
“In addition to protecting our current agriculture economy, we know that education is key to the long-term success of agriculture. Going forward, we will continue our clean water research efforts, utilize University of Minnesota grants for students, and continue partnerships with commodity groups and educational institutions.” added Senator Magnus.
The Senate Finance Committee will hear the bill at 8:30 am on Thursday, March 24.
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