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CapitalPress.com
January 20, 2017
Idaho
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CALS asks legislature for
$1.85 million infusion
By SEAN ELLIS
Capital Press
Idaho ag dean is pushing
aggressive plan for college
MOSCOW, Idaho — Mi-
chael Parrella, dean of the
University of Idaho’s Col-
lege of Agricultural and
Life Sciences, is pushing an
aggressive plan to increase
enrollment, renovate agricul-
tural experiment stations and
expand the college’s research
capacity.
Parrella told Capital Press
he’s moving quickly.
“I don’t want to waste any
time here,” said Parrella, who
took over as CALS dean last
February. “We’re doing it
now.”
Parrella said his goals are
part of a larger plan by the UI
president and provost to move
the whole university forward.
They include major facil-
ity upgrades at CALS’ nine
agricultural and extension re-
search stations across Idaho.
Some of those facilities are
approaching 60 years old.
“You don’t need a brand
new lab to do Nobel prize win-
ning work but at the same time,
we are trying to attract (new)
scientists,” Parrella said. “It
would be nice to give them a
modern, functional laboratory.”
“We’re talking major up-
grades and we’re putting that
plan together now,” he said.
Those upgrades will re-
quire millions of dollars to
implement and Parrella said
the funding will require part-
nerships between CALS, the
Idaho Legislature and ag in-
dustry.
The college also plans to
expand and modernize grad-
uate student housing at those
ag research stations and has
asked the legislature this year
for $1 million to help accom-
plish that.
Creating more and new
grad student housing “is quite
critical to better utilize the
research capacity we have at
those research and extension
centers,” said Mark McGuire,
director of UI’s Agricultural
Experiment Station, which
oversees the ag research sta-
tions.
CALS also plans to in-
crease the college’s enroll-
ment of 948 by 20 percent.
Achieving that goal will
include reaching students be-
fore they make their decision
on which career to pursue as
well as targeting FFA students
who don’t have a farming
background, Parrella said.
CALS is undergoing a
partial reorganization that
includes the formation of
separate plant sciences, soil
and water systems, and ento-
mology, plant pathology and
nematology departments.
That reorganization will
include developing “some
exciting new majors that will
be of greater attraction to
high school students,” Parrel-
la said.
Idaho Barley Commission
Administrator Kelly Olson
said the state’s farming in-
dustry is excited by the vi-
sion and energy Parrella has
brought to the job.
She said the state’s ag in-
dustry must be ready to speak
with legislators in support of
CALS’ plans and come up
with some of the necessary
funding in some cases.
“There is enthusiasm and
confidence among industry
that this guy will get the job
done,” she said. “I’m all on
board and I hope other peo-
ple will be on board as well
(because) the heavy lifting is
yet to come.”
Olson said CALS’ plan
to increase enrollment could
benefit all of agriculture be-
cause a lot of agribusiness
jobs are difficult to fill due to
a lack of skilled workers.
“That trained work force
is a ... big need for us,” she
said.
of what we asked for,” said
CALS Chief Financial Officer
Christian Elsberry.
Mark McGuire, director
of UI’s Agricultural Experi-
ment Station, which oversees
the college’s nine ag research
centers, said the existing grad-
uate student housing at the
centers is modest and 55-60
years old.
The new housing will save
on expenses because grad-
uate students won’t have to
rent off-station housing and
the modern accommodations
will also help CALS recruit
additional grad students, he
said.
“Our facilities at field sta-
tions to accommodate grad
students is minimal and in
some places it’s non-exis-
tent,” said CALS Dean Mi-
chael Parrella. “We have to do
a better job accommodating
them at the field stations.”
The Aberdeen center con-
ducts research on potatoes,
wheat and barley, the Kimber-
ly center focuses on projects
related to dry beans, potatoes,
irrigation and water resourc-
es, and the Parma center fo-
cuses on cereals, forages, veg-
etables, fruit, seed and other
specialty crops produced in
southwestern Idaho.
Legislative committee agenda change
shows lawmakers’ regard for agriculture
By SEAN ELLIS
Capital Press
BOISE — A major change
in a legislative committee’s
agenda demonstrates the high
regard Idaho lawmakers have
for the state’s farming sector.
The Legislature’s Joint
Legislative Economic Out-
look and Revenue Assessment
Committee meets annually
the week before the state’s
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3-1/#4N
Capital Press
2-1/#4x
By SEAN ELLIS
Sean Ellis/Capital Press
Tom Elias, a research assistant at University of Idaho’s Parma
research station, conducts tests in the station’s laboratory last Sep-
tember. UI’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences is seeking
an additional $1.85 million for new graduate student housing and
major lab renovations at some of its nine agricultural research and
extension centers.
legislative session convenes.
Economists and leaders
of many of the state’s top
economic sectors, including
construction, retail, logging,
agriculture, banking and au-
tomotive, brief committee
members on how their sectors
are performing.
Legislators use their esti-
mates to help them forecast
how much revenue the state
will take in during the fiscal
year and that revenue estimate
is used as a guide during the
session to set state budgets.
The committee’s agenda
was reduced from two days
to one this year, and most
of the economic sectors that
have traditionally been on the
agenda were dropped.
The lone private sector
survivors: Agriculture and
credit unions.
Keith Bybee, a state bud-
get analyst and committee
agenda organizer, said the
committee’s co-chairs wanted
to streamline the meeting and
get to the basics.
“They wanted to hear from
the pushers and pullers of our
economy; what is really driv-
ing the economy and how does
that relate to general fund rev-
enues,” he said. “There is no
doubt ag plays a huge roll still
in Idaho’s economy.”
A large chunk of the
state’s gross domestic product
“comes from agriculture and
we thought it was real import-
ant to hear” from that sector,
said Rep. Marc Gibbs, a com-
mittee co-chairman and Re-
publican farmer from Grace.
University of Idaho Ag-
ricultural Economist Garth
Taylor was picked to brief the
committee on the state’s farm-
ing sector. During his Jan. 5
presentation, he used sever-
al facts to show how critical
farming is to Idaho.
Idaho ranks fourth in the
nation when it comes to how
much of a state’s total gross
domestic product is related to
agriculture, Taylor said.
Although total farm cash
receipts declined 4 percent in
2016, he said, Idaho agricul-
ture is far out-performing the
U.S. overall since 1980 when
it comes to cash receipts in in-
flation-adjusted dollars.
From 1980 to 2015, Idaho
farm cash receipts increased
44 percent in real dollars
while U.S. farm cash receipts
rose 6 percent, Taylor said.
Even though cash receipts
and net farm income in de-
clined in 2016, the state’s
farming sector will con-
tinue to act as a stabilizing
influence on the economy
because farmers still have
to purchase inputs to grow
their crops and raise their
livestock, he said.
“All the costs of produc-
tion remain the same, even
when prices are down,” he
said. “Regardless of whether
the price of milk is $20 or $12
(per hundredweight), you still
have to feed your cow hay and
it still has to be milked.”
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Courtesy College of Agricultural and Life Sciences
Michael Parrella, dean of University of Idaho’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, is introduced
to Idaho ag industry leaders last February during a Food Producers of Idaho meeting. Parrella has
aggressive plans for CALS, including major renovations at each of the college’s nine ag research and
extension stations.
BOISE — The fiscal year
2018 budget request for Uni-
versity of Idaho’s College of
Agricultural and Life Scienc-
es seeks a one-time infusion
of $1.85 million in state fund-
ing for major lab renovations
and new graduate student
housing at some of the col-
lege’s research stations.
Gov. Butch Otter’s pro-
posed budget recommends
funding the request but opts to
spread the money over three
years.
CALS is seeking $1 mil-
lion for new graduate student
housing at four of its nine re-
search and extension centers,
including the Kimberly, Par-
ma, Aberdeen and Nancy M.
Cummings research centers.
The college has also asked
for $500,000 for lab reno-
vations at the Kimberly and
Parma research centers, and
$351,000 to purchase new
farm equipment that will be
used to conduct agricultural
research.
The budget recommended
by Otter, a Republican ranch-
er, includes the $351,000 for
new equipment as well as
$500,000 of the remaining
$1.5 million that CALS is
seeking in fiscal 2018.
Otter recommends spread-
ing the remaining $1 million
over the following two fiscal
years.
CALS’ officials said they
were happy with the gover-
nor’s recommendation.
“We are very pleased
with the governor’s support