Background Information and Presentations
To read background information on each issue or to watch a video for additional resources, click below.
Broadband (National)
Rural connectivity is essential to agriculture and the rural way of life. Without being connected rural America will fall behind our urban and suburban counterparts. Farm Bureau is working to find out how connected our membership is to the internet, and what obstacles stand in the way of rural connectivity.
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Daylight Savings Time (National)
Every spring and every fall we participate in the ritual of changing our clocks forwards and backwards. There is a new momentum to eliminate this ritual and keep our clocks the same all year. We would like to know how this would impact our membership and how our membership feels about this issue.
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Deer Hunting (state)
The Iowa deer herd management plan is designed to maintain a balance between the public’s demand for hunting and viewing opportunities with a need to keep deer numbers compatible with agricultural interests, highway safety and habitat limitations. The existing plan goal is to manage Iowa’s deer population at a level that sustains an annual harvest of between 100,000-120,000 deer. What Iowa deer management plan goal do you favor?
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Distributed Generation
On-site, customer-owned electrical generation systems continue to increase in Iowa. Discussions have begun to consider changes to the current electric billing system and how both variable costs for electrical generation and fixed costs associated with building and maintaining the grid are charged to costumers. How should variable and fixed costs be covered by rate payers? Should we be encouraging renewable energy incentives and how should they be provided?
Foreign Land Ownership (State)
Iowa is one of eight states that restrict foreign ownership of agricultural land. Iowa allows ownership by resident aliens, but prohibits ownership by nonresident aliens. A few exceptions allow some nonresident aliens to own ag land for a period of time or if they were grandfathered under the law. Iowa also has a requirement to report foreign land ownership to the Secretary of State. Should Iowa continue it’s prohibition or improve its reporting and enforcement requirements?
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Minor Farm License (state)
Current Iowa law limits a minor's to only driving farm tractors or implements of husbandry within a two-mile radius of the home farm without a driver's license. Other states have special farm licenses for minors driving cars or pick-ups when engaged in a farming operation. Should a farm license, similar to a school permit, be created or is current law sufficient?
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Renewable Energy (State)
Iowa continues to grow its wind electrical generation capacity. Currently, landowners decide whether a turbine can be located on their property and in many counties, a county ordinance regulates siting and other factors in wind farm development. The state does not currently regulate siting. What is the proper jurisdiction to regulate siting of wind farms? With the increase in the development of solar projects should the way they are assessed for taxable purposes by changed?
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Rural Improvement Zones (State)
Private lake developments in counties under 20,000 can petition the county to create a Rural Improvement Zone (RIZ) for water quality, erosion control, and other issues. Should the process they are created and reviewed under by changed?
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Veterinarian Incentives (State)
Doctors of Veterinary Medicine are critical to the long-term vitality of Iowa’s livestock sector. USDA offers financial incentives to private practice large animal veterinarians to reside and practice in underserved areas. Nineteen states also offer some form of financial incentive. Should Iowa have their own incentive program in addition to the USDA program?
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Wetlands (National)
Many farmers are frustrated with a lack of transparency and due process in wetland determinations and appeals, and are often unaware of the required definitions, rules and procedures. What changes by USDA do you favor to be more transparent to improve the process of wetland determinations?