Policy Development: What's in it For Me?
How to get the most out of Farm Bureau’s Policy Development process
By Paul Brierley, Arizona Farm Bureau
Anyone who’s been around Farm Bureau for any time at all has heard the words “Policy Development.” But do we really stop to think what they mean to us? Policy Development is the heart of Farm Bureau’s grassroots approach to issues. And when you understand how the system works, you can use it to your advantage – solving issues that threaten your Ag operation.
There are thirteen commodity advisory committees within Arizona Farm Bureau (AZFB), each dedicated to a specific slice of agriculture: Ag Nursery & Greenhouse, Air & Water Quality, Beef, Citrus, Cotton, Dairy, Equine, Hay & Forage, Horticulture & Specialty Crops, Labor, Sheep & Goat, Water, and Wheat & Grain.
These committees generally meet just once a year, but are a great way to get involved in Farm Bureau and make sure that your issues of concern get addressed. If you are a regular Ag member of Farm Bureau, your county president would love to help you get involved as a commodity advisory committee member, no matter whether or not you’ve had other roles within Farm Bureau.
Every year in March, the annual Policy Development process starts fresh as the commodity advisory committees gather to surface issues they feel could impact their segment of agriculture in the near future. These meetings culminate in a report to the counties that contains suggested issues to explore when crafting new policy for Farm Bureau to pursue.
The report has a new format this year, with a couple critical issues up front for every county to consider: legalized gambling and scalable regulation of direct sale marketers and farmers’ markets -- particularly for food safety. These issues are highlighted because existing policy needs to be reconsidered or supplemented in light of current events, such as the push for “Racinos” and the growth of direct-market agriculture.
There is also a page in the report for the top issues raised by each of the commodity committees, along with references to current state and national policies (if they exist) so that you can evaluate whether they properly address the upcoming issues, or if new solutions are needed. If you aren’t interested in a particular commodity, you can skip that topic; but for the commodities that you are involved with, you may want to peruse the issues listed on that page as you prepare for your county Policy Development meetings.
So, besides serving on a commodity advisory committee to surface upcoming issues, how can you utilize the Policy Development (PD) process? I’m glad you asked! You should make plans to attend your county Farm Bureau’s PD meeting this summer. This is where new or amended policies are proposed for approval of the members at the county annual meeting. The schedule of county PD meetings is in the nearby table, as well as on the AZFB Policy Development web page in the Government Relations section of www.azfb.org.
In preparation for the county PD meeting, you should come up with one or more issues that you think need to be addressed. Those can come from the commodity committee report mentioned above, or just something you’ve been facing in your operation. The policy development web page has many resources for you to explore. These include searchable AZFB and AFBF Policy Books, Issue Backgrounders, the PD Calendar, and the Commodity Committee Report.
Hopefully you’ll also bring a solution or two to the PD meeting!
The policy recommendations that come out of a county PD meeting are presented at the county annual meeting. All Ag members are invited to attend so they can approve proposed policies, elect local officers, and elect delegates to represent the county at the state annual meeting.
Tim Dunn is 1st vice-president of Arizona Farm Bureau and chairs the Policy Development Committee. “In order for Farm Bureau to be the Voice of Agriculture, we need input from all sectors of production agriculture. I encourage all Ag members to have their voices heard by attending their county’s PD and annual meetings,” says Dunn.
Policies that require state or national-level solutions are forwarded to the State Annual Meeting where elected delegates from all 13 county Farm Bureaus will discuss and approve them. Policies approved at the state level become part of the AZFB Policy Book, from which their implementation is pursued.
Likewise, approved policies addressing national issues will be sent on to the American Farm Bureau, where delegates from all 50 states and Puerto Rico will approve final policies.
So think of those issues that you are passionate about, and come work on getting them fixed – starting at your County Policy Development Meeting!
Remember to look under Government Relations/Policy Development at www.azfb.org for resources to help you successfully navigate the PD process and find “what’s in it for me” – namely a solution for your issue that Arizona and America’s largest general farm organization will get behind. To discuss this further or to get involved, contact Paul Brierley at 480-635-3612 or paulbrierley@azfb.org.
