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| Congress To Reexamine Health Care, Other Programs | | |
The health care law, entitlement programs, and new limits on emissions of greenhouse gases, are among some of the programs expected to be reexamined by Congress in the coming months.
House Republican leaders have pledged to vote on repeal of the recently passed  health care law prior to the president's State of the Union address later this month. A flat-out repeal of the law would face a difficult time in the Senate, where Democrats still hold a majority, albeit a diminished one. Any such measure passing both houses would most certainly be vetoed by the President.
Speaker of the House Rep. John Boehner of Ohio has indicated that he would lead efforts to revive the private sector by reducing the size of government -- cutting federal regulation, taxes and spending, including the budget of Congress itself.
MWFPA is working with a coalition of farm and business interests to ensure that the farm flex provision eancted in the last farm bill is not repealed. MWFPA will also continue to monitor federal action relative to BPA.
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| President Signs Food Safety Law, Funding In Doubt | |
President Obama signed the new food safety bill into law on January 4, however concerns remain that its provisions will not be funded.
Supporters of the legislation have expressed concern that there is still no provision to meet the estimated $1.4 billion price tag for the law over the next four years. The legislation passed through Congress late last year, after overcoming a number of roadblocks, including the failure of the Senate to take up the bill for a year, a filibuster attempt, a technical glitch and a number of controversial amendments-including one banning BPA. MWFPA opposed the BPA amendment and it was not adopted.
The bill will give the FDA the authority to order product recalls and will require that food manufacturers have detailed food safety plans, and give the FDA better access to company records.
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| IL Loses Another House Seat | | |
Illinois will lose one of its 19 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2013. The 435 seats in the U.S. House are split up among the states every ten years using Census data. Illinois will now have 18 House seats.
According to Census data, the Midwest overall grew by 3.9 percent. The South saw much great population growth-a 14.3 percent increase from the year 2000 to 2010. Texas, for instance, will add four House seats.
Illinois' population grew 3 percent to 12.8 million people. But that wasn't enough to keep its 19 seats. Illinois has lost legislative seats in each of the last four Census cycles.
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| Farmer's Union President Tapped For MN Ag Position | |
MN Gov.-elect Mark Dayton has named David Frederickson as the new commissioner of Agriculture. Frederickson is the former National Farmer's Union President and current Director of Agriculture Outreach for U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar.
He is a former Minnesota State Senator having served in the legislature from 1987-1993. Frederickson is 66 and a fourth-generation family farmer/owner operator.
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| Former WI Ag Secretary And Legislator To Head Major Agencies | |
Gov-elect Scott Walker named Former WI Ag Secretary Ben Brancel to again head up the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP).
Brancel served as secretary from 1997-2001. He was then appointed by the Bush Administration to serve as the director of the Wisconsin Farm Service Agency--a post he held until early 2009. In February of last year, he was hired to serve as the part-time state relations liaison for the University of Wisconsin-Madison's College of Agricultural and Life Sciences.
Brancel, 60, is a fifth-generation beef producer from Endeavor, WI, where he raises Angus beef cattle on a 290-acre farm. He was elected to serve in the WI State Assembly in 1987. He later became Assembly Speaker until 1997 when Governor Thompson tapped him to run DATCP.
The state's Natural Resources Department will be lead by Cathy Stepp. She was a state Senator from 2003-2007. Stepp has also been employed as a Vice President at Magnum Truck and Equipment, Inc., worked with the Wisconsin Builders' Association, National Association of Home Builders and numerous other local builders' groups.
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| IL Looks At Possible Tax Increase | |
The IL legislature returned this week to the specter of a major tax increase in response to the state's continued fiscal crisis.
Illinois currently faces a budget deficit of $13 billion, which Comptroller Dan Hynes said could rise to $15 billion this year. The Governor continues to support a 1% income tax hike for education, but capitol insiders believe he will support other, larger proposals. Those could includ a bill to increase the state income tax from 3 to 4, or as much as 5 percent.
MWFPA expects to see renewed efforts to pass a BPA ban in IL similar to legislation proposed last year. The association will continue to oppose efforts to limit the use of the proven safe chemical.
The new IL General Assembly will be inaugurated on January 12th. The Governor will be sworn in on January 10th.
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| Welcome New Member! | |
Help us welcome our newest Association Members! Find out more about these companies by clicking on their company name and visiting their website. |
| MWFPA 2010 Convention Survey Results |
MWFPA members consider legislative and regulatory advocacy to be extremely important, according to a survey conducted at the annual convention and processing crops conference.
They also believe the association is doing a fine job relating to their issues and priorities and consider government regulation their most pressing issue, now and in the future.
The survey was intended to gauge how satisfied MWFPA members are with their association. About 10% of convention attendees took part in the survey which was available on the convention floor. It was conducted in response to last year's strategic planning recommendations and will be followed up with a survey of senior managers.
Respondents were given a number of association activities and asked to indicate their importance. Over 80% identified legislative and regulatory activities as being "Extremely Important". When asked to describe MWFPA's understanding of their issues and priorities, 80% to 90% said it was "Excellent" or "Good." Over 90% answered either "excellent" or "good" when queried about MWFPA's responsiveness to their issues and priorities.
Full results from the survey are available by contacting the MWFPA office at 608-255-9946 or brian.elliott@mwfpa.org.
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| McCain Foods Joins Healthy Weight Foundation |
MWFPA member McCain Foods USA, has joined the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF), whose mission is to reduce obesity, especially among children age 6 to 11, by 2015.
McCain will support programs and activities created to help people achieve a healthy weight by balancing energy (calories) consumed with energy expended through physical activity. HWCF activities concentrate on three key areas: the marketplace, the workplace and schools.
The HWCF is a first-of-its kind coalition that unites more than 125 retailers, food and beverage manufacturers, sporting goods and insurance companies, professional athletes, restaurants, a professional sports association, trade associations, NGOs and the Army. For more information, visit
www.healthyweightcommitment.org.
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| MWFPA Calendar of Events | |
February 16-17, 2011: MWFPA Safety Conference. Kalahari Resort, Wisconsin Dells, WI. A tremendous opportunity for safety and health conscious individuals to gather and learn from experts and peers how to best address today's safety, health and compliance issues. The hottest topics affecting industrial safety will be covered. The 1 to 1-1/2 hour session formats allow time for a thorough understanding of each subject, in addition to questions and answers. Register here.
June 1-2, 2011: MWFPA Golf Outing. Reception on the evening of the June 1. Trappers' Turn in Wisconsin Dells, WI. Details to follow. November 28-Dec. 1, 2011: MWFPA 107th Annual Convention and 84th Annual Processing Crops Conference, Wisconsin Dells, WI, Kalahari Resort and Convention Center. Mark your calendars now! Don't miss this invaluable opportunity to gain exclusive insights from some of the industry's most innovative and knowledgeable representatives and to make meaningful contacts with clients, prospects and referral sources.
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| MWFPA Educational Opportunities | |
March 7-11, 2011: University of Wisconsin Better Process Control School. Crowne Plaza Hotel in Madison, WI. This course will help employees of food companies meet the safety requirements set by the Code of Federal Regulations for safe canning of foods. This USDA- and FDA-approved training is required for supervisors of thermal processing operations in the canning and retortable flexible container industries. Detailed information, including a brochure, enrollment form, and a link to online registration is available through the University of Wisconsin-Madison CALS Conference Services: http://www.cals.wisc.edu/ccs/Current%20Programs.html. A draft schedule of the week's events is available at http://www.foodsafety.wisc.edu/better_process.html.
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The MWFPA News Bulletin is published twice monthly or as developments warrant, and is intended for a general audience of manufacturers and suppliers of food and agricultural products. |
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