Capitol Report for April 28th, 2010

Planning for Missouri’s Future

As we enter the final three weeks of the 2010 legislative session, the state budget continues to dominate the discussions in Jefferson City. The House and Senate have each passed their version of next years spending plan, and the budget conference committee is now working to address the differences. Although we are close to finalizing the FY2011 budget which has been plagued with revenue shortfalls and difficult decisions, we must not get so caught up in these challenges that we lose sight of future opportunities.

I have long advocated that our state government’s most important responsibility is funding the schools in our state. I also believe that our state government has a responsibility to ensure the safety of Missouri’s citizens, protect the most needy and vulnerable, and help build infrastructure for the good of the public. This infrastructure would include roads, bridges, water, sewers, and other vital systems necessary to foster economic health and prosperity. For example, without safe, reliable water resources we will not be successful in building or sustaining a strong economic climate, good paying jobs, or a high quality of life.

In coming years, the need for broadband and high speed internet services will be greater than ever. Although I do not believe the government should be building these backbone networks, I do believe that we need sound public policy that facilitates and optimizes the deployment of high-speed broadband communication systems much like the public policy set forth decades ago that determined every Missourian should have access to a landline telephone. Today, the exchange of information through broadband internet connections is changing the way people live and work. In order to be competitive in a global market and enable the best education, business, and healthcare delivery systems possible, it is more important than ever that these services be available to citizens throughout Missouri.

Cultivating and supporting a climate that facilitates the building of the infrastructure needed to support the growth and development of Missouri’s businesses while improving the lives of our citizens is a legitimate and responsible function of state government. I believe it is imperative to begin with a clear understanding of where we stand currently and where we want to be in the future. With federal stimulus dollars coming to states for the building of broadband communication networks, it is important that we identify our areas of need so that we are able to optimize the investments made with public dollars. Just as safe and reliable water is necessary to ensure future economic growth, I believe that affordable, reliable broadband communication is going to be a cornerstone of a strong economy and prosperous future.

As always, please feel free to call, email, or write with your ideas or concerns. The Capitol number is (573) 751-1415, my email is brad.lager@senate.mo.gov and my mailing address is Room 429, State Capitol Building, Jefferson City, MO 65101.

The Basics of Writing a Business Plan

Do you need cash to start or expand your business? Have you gone to the bank and been told you need a business plan to get a business loan? Are you unsure about what must go into a business plan or how to make it look professional?

Well, the University of Missouri Extension has a class which will show you how to put a business plan together. You will be shown the basic parts of a business plan and what a lending institution will be looking for in each of those sections. You will be shown how to make your business plan look professional, and how to avoid common mistakes when building your plan. Moreover, this seminar explains how your business plan can help you in the day-to-day operation of your business. As the name suggests, it is a PLAN for your business.

The cost for the three-hour session is $35, and will be held at the Holt County Extension Office(Courthouse Annex), 101 E. Missouri, Oregon, MO, on May 4th from 9 AM to 12 noon.

To register for “The Basics of Writing a Business Plan,” call The Holt County Extension Office at: (660) 446-3724.

A Moment with Mike for April 28th, 2010

As the end of session approaches, the scramble to pass meaningful legislation continues. The efforts to create a balanced budget in this very difficult time hastens and deadlines become the major obstacle.

I have been working vigorously the past few months on a specific piece of legislation (HB 1473) regarding the Access Missouri Grant, which is a financial aid grant for students in higher education. Access Missouri is given to students based on their expected family contribution (EFC) when getting ready to begin any given school year. This is not a merit-based award like most scholarships in the state, which are awarded based on grades, activities, and so on. My goal in changing the laws regarding Access Missouri was to allow more students to actually have access to higher education, instead of letting a difficult financial situation keep them from a quality education. In this piece of legislation, the renewal grade point average (GPA) is lowered from a 2.5 to a 2.0 for a student’s first 60 hours of credit, and then jumping back to a 2.5 for the remainder of their time in an undergraduate institution. While those of us who fight for education daily want students to maintain the best grades possible, we also understand the difficulties many young people go through in their freshman and sophomore years of college. This legislation is estimated to help as many as 1700 Missouri students per year maintain this piece of their financial aid and continue their education.

Another part of this legislation, which was added on the House floor, a bill originally introduced by Representative Kingery, equalizes the award amounts for students who attend either a public or private university. Presently private school attendees receive a larger award than public school attendees. It is important that students have the opportunity to attend the school of their choice and not be forced to make decisions based solely on the amount of their Access award. The passage of this bill is a culmination of much negotiation and collaboration with higher education institutions across the state and will make education more accessible for many students.

A different issue that was discussed extensively this week was the use of tax credits. While tax credits may be vital to our many economic development programs, if used excessively, can become detrimental as we are obligated to redeem millions of dollars per year using taxpayer dollars that could be supporting other programs. Maintaining a proper balance and providing those credits that stimulate business and create revenue for the state, while limiting the growth of credits that have ballooned in recent years, creates a major dilemma.

House Bill 1786, which passed out of the House last week, would provide tax credit incentives to those who attract major events to our state. This bill focuses on bringing new events to Missouri and is wisely crafted so that tax credits are not issued until the events have occurred. The House also passed HB 2252, which provides a tax credit for pregnancy resource centers in Missouri.

If you have questions, you may reach me at my Capitol number 573-751-9465, at the local district number, 660-582-4014, by email at mike.thomson@house.mo.gov or by mail at Room 114B State Capitol Building, Jefferson City, MO 65101.

Every Day is Earth Day For Cattle Farmers and Ranchers

In honor of the 40^th anniversary of Earth Day, American farmers and ranchers are celebrating the more than 40 ways raising cattle can contribute to environmental sustainability.

Dawn Thurnau from the Missouri Beef Industry Council says that over 86% of all cattle farmers and ranchers cite environmental stewardship and environmental resources as the most important elements of their success, and say they have embraced the values of Earth Day for generations.

“The steps that we take to improve the environment are not new. They’ve been around for many decades. As short-term tenants of the land, it’s our job to ensure it’s left in better shape for the next generation.”

Thurnau says that many aren’t aware of how cattle farming and ranching has evolved in their conservation practices over the years, or just how many people each farmer feeds.

“What a lot of people don’t realize is that beef farmers provide more people with nutritious beef products using fewer natural resources than ever before. Today’s American farmer feeds 144 people worldwide, and we’ll need to feed even more in the future.”

Thurnau goes on to describe the many environmental benefits of cattle farming and ranching.

“Pastures provide forage and habitat for numerous wildlife species, including 20 million deer, 500,000 antelope, 400,000 elk and 55,000 horses and burrows.”

She also says that farmers and ranchers who are landowners have restored or enhanced 445,000 acres and 885 river miles of habitat for fish and wildlife, and employ a variety of environmentally friendly practices.

“Farmers also do things like rotational grazing to make sure the grass stays fresh as long as possible. Of course, manure is the most natural form of fertilizer there is. These little practices that cattle farmers do every single day to protect the land, that’s what people talk about during Earth Day, but they don’t realize this is an everyday thing for cattle producers.”

If you would like to find beef recipes that are both tasty and healthy, visit the Missouri Beef Industry Council website at www.mobeef.org, or the national website at www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com.

Worth County FBLA Qualifies Nine

Members of the Worth County Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) Chapter recently attended the 2010 Missouri FBLA State Leadership Conference held on April 18th, 19th, and 20th in Columbia, Missouri. Over 2,750 members and advisers representing 426 chapters throughout Missouri met to participate in leadership and career workshops, and to compete in the state leadership awards program.

Worth County qualified nine for state and qualified in the following events:

Jordan Harding qualified in E-Business where he had to make a pretend website for Worth County High School’s 50th anniversary, the website had to have shopping cart capabilities and can be viewed at http://wc.k12.mo.us/Business%20Web/E%20business/Homepage.html. Jordan also qualified in Computer Applications where he was given two hours to produce business documents using word processing, spreadsheet, presentation, and database software. Jordan took 3rd in the State in E-Business and 4th in the state in Computer Applications. He barely missed qualifying for nationals in both.

Chelsea Ebrus qualified in Marketing. She had to take a one hour online test over marketing concepts. Chelsea placed 7th in the state, 7 points behind the state winner.

The following students also qualified by taking written tests. Lauren Null in Personal Finance, Wyatt McClain in Business Law, Carli Jackson in Introduction to Business Communications, and Sierra Grove in Business Procedures. They did not place in the top 10.

Ashley Reynolds, Delaney Davidson, and Brooke Gilland qualified in Emerging Business Issues. The team put together an affirmative and negative argument over whether the auto bailout money should have government accountability on how they used the money. The team had to prepare both sides of the argument and before presenting they drew for which side they would present to the judges. The team did not place in the top 8 of performance events.

The entire Worth County FBLA chapter was recognized with the “Reach Out and Care” award that was granted to chapters who had completed various community service projects.

Congratulations to all FBLA members who qualified and competed at the FBLA State Leadership Conference.

Spring Brings a Purple Haze

Spring Brings a Purple Haze

By Heather Benedict, Agronomy Specialist

The weather is finally cooperating. People all over Missouri are spending more time outdoors in their fields, yards or gardens. Something you may have noticed is a purple haze over parts of the landscape. This is due to one or several different weeds. Purple deadnettle (Lamium purpureum) and henbit (Lamium amplexicaule) are both low growing plants with tiny purple flowers.

Purple deadnettle, and henbit are winter annual type plants. This means they germinate in the fall or late winter. They generally bloom in the spring, produce seed and then the plants die. Both Purple deadnettle and henbit are in the mint family, so when crushed or mowed, they produce a slightly minty scent. Both types of weed have square stems. The difference between them is in the shape of the leaves. Henbit has rounded leaves and darker purple flowers. Purple deadnettle has pointed leaves and pale flowers. The top leaves of purple deadnettle can also be a purplish color.

In crop fields, these types of weeds are not very competitive for moisture or for nutrients. The crop that may be most affected by henbit is wheat. Researchers in Missouri have found that henbit in densities of 82 plants per square foot can result in yield reductions. However, densities of 18 plants per square foot do not show any yield reduction. The fact that henbit dies off quickly in the spring, has led researchers to look into using it as a ground cover for row crops. However, there is some concern with using henbit as a ground cover for soybeans as it is a host for the soybean cyst nematode. In order to decrease the damage to yield from the nematodes, a good rotation system should be used. In the rotation system, henbit is not a good option.

In pastures henbit is surprisingly digestible with relatively high protein values. Henbit has been shown to have protein values comparable to tall fescue. Henbit is also palatable for animals and can be used for grazing until later maturing species come on. The drawback to using henbit or even chickweed in a pasture system is that they are not high producing.

For home owners, these weeds can be a nuisance. They spread quickly and easily. Also, they are most noticeable in the spring when they are difficult to control. 2,4-D herbicides may be used to help control purple deadnettle and henbit, however that type of herbicide is volatile and can easily injure or kill, tomatoes, flowers, grapes, and other garden vegetables. Another option for control is to use a pre-emergent herbicide on the lawn in the fall.

Anhydrous fertilizer supplies stretched thin

As farmers pour into local co-ops and other fertilizer retailers to prepare for spring planting, many find long lines or shortages of the anhydrous ammonia they need for fields.

“Nobody had much of a chance to get work done last fall because harvest was late and wet, so pretty much it’s left all the anhydrous ammonia to go on this spring and caused a logistical nightmare,” said Bill Coen, vice president of plant foods and transportation for MFA, Inc. “Guys who have been in the business 40 years haven’t seen this type of spring unfold before where everyone’s running at once. It’s very unusual.”

University of Missouri Extension soil specialist Peter Scharf recommends that farmers not squander prime planting time to wait for anhydrous.

“I advise farmers to plant when conditions are right even if that means finding another way to get their nitrogen on,” Scharf said.

“Pre-emerge, post-emerge, sidedress, topdress, broadcasting, injected, dribbled—there are lots of ways to get it done that will work – and the plants aren’t picky about when they get it.

“Research suggests that as long as you get your nitrogen down before corn is three feet tall there is no average yield difference from getting it on before planting.”

MFA is not the only business dealing with anhydrous supply issues. Conditions across the Midwest seem to be the reason for the trouble for everyone.

“Generally [field work] starts in the south – Texas and Oklahoma – and they will finish before we start, but this year we had the whole upper and lower Midwest dry up at the same time,” Coen said. “Once that started we ended up draining the supply in the state in a week’s time, where our terminals went through three to four weeks’ storage in a week’s time.”

Compounding the problem is transportation issues.

Coen explained that there are a limited number of anhydrous transfer trailers. Those typically travel from state to state servicing the needs of co-ops and distributors as the planting season progresses from south to north. Since Missouri fields didn’t dry up until about 10 days after neighboring states, the trucks weren’t available here to transport anhydrous from terminals near the Kansas/Missouri and Missouri/Illinois borders to local co-ops.

Coen noted that the problem may begin to lessen somewhat. He estimates that about half of farmers have applied nitrogen now.

Scharf advises that there are ways to get the nitrogen on fields other than anhydrous.

“Anhydrous is the cheapest nitrogen source and the most resistant to loss, but the slowest to apply,” he said. “Given how far behind we are in field operations, other sources that are faster to apply are a good choice this year.

“They’re a little more expensive, but less expensive than losing yield because you didn’t plant when there were ideal conditions.” Sidedress application of anhydrous later in the season is another way to deal with the current bottleneck. “It will probably be a lot easier to get in a few weeks.”

Scharf warned of problems with planting too soon after application. Ammonia is toxic to seeds, which can be a potential problem if they come in contact.

“Placing the anhydrous deep enough to prevent seed contact is more important than a time lag between application and planting,” said Scharf.

Another option is that farmers with RTK GPS systems can use the system to maintain a constant distance between the application track and the seed furrow.

As far as phosphorus and potassium fertilizer goes, Scharf said many fields are positioned well even if none are applied this spring.

“For people who have in the past had a regular nutrient program, their soil should have enough stored to supply what the crop needs,” Scharf said. “If they like a cushion they can double up next time they apply fertilizer.

“Farmers haven’t had to deal with this before and that’s been stressful, but there are ways to get around this predicament.”