12 CapitalPress.com
January 1, 2016
‘Don’t even get me started with regulatory issues’
2016 from Page 1
But good cheer aside, fall-
ing commodity prices, higher
labor costs, tight water sup-
plies and tighter regulations
have for some producers set
up 2016 to be more a matter
of seeking resolutions instead
of making them.
In California, farmers will
be honing their strategies to
deal with new state wage-and-
hour laws.
Although most farmers
pay more than minimum
wage, the Jan. 1 increase from
$9 to $10 an hour will have
many making a comparable
increase in what they pay their
workers.
“We’ve been paying well
above the minimum wage for
a long time, but it moves up
the bottom,” said Michael Va-
sey, manager of Lindauer Riv-
er Ranch, a prune and walnut
operation in Red Bluff, Calif.
“If your strategy is to pay
$1 or $2 above the minimum
wage, it moves up your wag-
es more. ... I’m having to pay
more to a vast majority of my
employees,” he said.
Another recently passed
law requires growers to pay
workers for required breaks
even when they’re paid at a
piece rate.
“You have to pay them
at the rate they’re earning”
while they’re picking, prun-
ing or doing some other work.
“It’s very complicated keep-
ing track of the hours. It’s
an individual calculation for
each guy,” said Vasey, who is
also president of the Tehama
County Farm Bureau.
A similar formula is ap-
plied to paid sick leave for
piece-rate workers, which
employers also must provide,
he said.
Water worries
Coming off a four-year
drought, California producers
say they will also be more ef-
ficient with water — and pray
the December deluge across
much of the state will contin-
ue through the winter and into
spring.
“I do the rain dance. … It’s
all about water and rain, and
we’re off to a good start,” said
Marysville, Calif., rice grower
Charley Mathews, a member
of the USA Rice Federation’s
executive committee.
He’s hoping California
will receive at least average
precipitation this year to ease
drought fears, although fore-
casters say more than one wet
winter is likely needed to end
the drought.
“Hopefully we’ll get a
Eric Mortenson/Capital Press
Gresham, Ore., nursery co-owner Angela Bailey resolves to be more ready for change in 2016. The nursery specializes is unusual trees
such as monkey puzzle and Japanese maples.
good couple of years,” he
said.
Regulatory rigors
Dave Dashiell, a rancher in
northeastern Washington state,
has lost hundreds of sheep to
predators in the past couple of
years. He said state officials
paid for 24 confirmed wolf
kills in 2014 and attributed his
2015 losses to cougars, leav-
ing the future of his ranch in
doubt.
“You can make long-term
plans and to a certain extent
we’ve kind of done that, but
then all of a sudden the state
decides we need to be out of
the sheep business — that is
the biggest thing holding us
up right now, and I’m not in a
very good mood about it,” he
said.
He also pointed to regula-
tions regarding sage grouse,
waters of the U.S. and labor,
saying, “They’re working pret-
ty hard to put everybody out of
business that they can.”
Dashiell said he and the
Cattle Producers of Washing-
ton plan to emphasize to law-
makers the need for regulatory
relief in 2016.
Eastern Washington farm-
er Aaron Golladay, first vice
president of the state Farm
Bureau, also said he hopes to
slow the tide of federal and
state regulation.
“We’re going to get steam-
rolled on a lot of regulations
coming. There’s something
new almost weekly right now,”
he said.
He said he wishes he could
get environmental groups to
understand that farmers “be-
lieve in the environment more
than probably anybody else”
and that regulations can have
unintended consequences.
For example, “no-touch” ri-
parian zones turn into kindling
boxes that burn hot enough to
wipe out all vegetation, open-
ing the way for noxious weeds
and poor water quality, he said.
Projects and plans
Nicole Berg, a Paterson,
Wash., wheat farmer and for-
mer president of the Wash-
ington Association of Wheat
Growers, resolves to continue
to tell agriculture’s story to leg-
islators in the year ahead and to
see the various organizations
in the wheat industry focus on
the industry’s strategic plan to
move forward.
“With farming, change can
be difficult, but it is always ex-
citing to see some of the new
things you can do with policy,”
she said.
As for resolutions, she said
her family typically sticks with
what they intend to do.
“Farmers, all in all, what we
say is what we do,” she said.
Ritzville, Wash., wheat
farmer Mike Miller said he
plans to be more conservative
on the farm as margins shrink.
He also hopes to adopt a
different marketing philoso-
phy, to take better advantage
of the highest prices possible.
As an officer on the board
of U.S. Wheat Associates and
member of the Washington
Grain Commission, he also
wants to see the industry focus
on overseas markets.
In Oregon, nursery owner
Angela Bailey believes 2016
will be a year of opportuni-
ty and resolves to be open to
whatever change may accom-
pany it.
“Just because we’ve al-
ways done something one way,
doesn’t mean we need to con-
tinue to do so,” she said.
Bailey, second vice presi-
dent of Oregon Farm Bureau,
owns Verna Jean Nursery
east of Portland, and with her
husband, Larry, sells special-
ty trees. She said 2015 was
“great” for nursery sales, and
that in itself poses some chal-
lenges.
“I will need to be deliber-
ate, in the new year, in how I
perform my duties in order to
maximize my effectiveness
in meeting all of our commit-
ments. This will require some
change in how I have histori-
cally operated,” she said.
In addition, all Oregon ag-
ricultural employers will have
to come up with creative solu-
tions to issues such as a pos-
sible minimum wage increase,
paid sick leave and other labor
issues, she said.
“Don’t even get me started
with regulatory issues,” she
said.
With the average person
now three generations re-
moved from the farm, produc-
ers must engage and inform
legislators regarding ag issues,
she said.
“Engage with state and na-
tional lawmakers. Engage with
the public. Each of us has the
opportunity to affect change,”
she said.
Business sense
Whether farmers and
ranchers ultimately abide by
their New Year’s resolutions,
they might want to take a lit-
tle advice from an agricultural
economist.
“No. 1, they’ve got to get
their financials together to just
see where they are,” said Dave
Kohl, professor emeritus of
agricultural and applied eco-
nomics at Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State Universi-
ty and a long-time partner in
Northwest Farm Credit Ser-
vices’ development program.
A lot of producers don’t
like to do it, but it’s the No. 1
priority. In this time of econom-
ic reset in agriculture, it’ll be
important to try to get a handle
on projected cash flow, he said.
They should also schedule a
meeting with their lender, and
not wait too long to do that.
With great wealth in the agri-
culture sector primarily in the
rear view mirror, it’s going to
be critical to work side-by-side
with their lender to gain flexi-
bility and options, he said.
If the operation is showing
negative margins, they better
be prepared to build their case
for financing, he said.
“Regulators kind of gave
ag a pass last year, but I don’t
think it’s going to happen this
year. Building that case is go-
ing to be very, very crucial for
some producers,” he said.
On the positive side, there’s
opportunity if they’ve posi-
tioned for it, he said.
“If they set some cash
aside, they’re going to be able
to get pretty good deals on
equipment,” he said.
In addition, some older
farmers are thinking maybe
it’s time to cash in following
that so-called “super cycle”
of wealth; some pretty good
assets are starting to soften, he
said.
“Producers who have posi-
tioned themselves are going to
be able to grow,” he said.
But he cautions producers
to get efficient before they get
bigger.
“Bigger isn’t better; better
is better,” he said.
He also advises producers
to take a note from top-flight
managers and sign up for three
or four educational and train-
ing events and to network.
And they should make sure
they take care of themselves
— exercise, read, take time
off, he said.
“I think that’s imperative,
especially where there’s a lot
of stress,” he said.
The year ahead is going to
be leaner in most commodities,
and agriculture is operating in
more challenging times than in
the past. Producers can’t con-
trol everything, but they are
getting better at managing
what they can, he said.
“Good times don’t last
forever, nor do bad times last
forever. Things can change in
a New York minute,” he said.
Producers should keep
that in mind and keep their
chin off the ground during
the year ahead, he said.
Capital Press reporters
Matthew Weaver in Washing-
ton, Tim Hearden in Califor-
nia and Eric Mortenson in
Oregon contributed to this
story.
NRCS maintains 730 SNOTEL monitoring ‘ I don’t know why we’re suddenly the bad guys’
one of their rallies. It might be
al prosecution is misplaced.
HAMMOND from Page 1
sites in 11 states, 82 of them in Oregon
“It doesn’t make sense to a little more aggressive than I’d
SNOW from Page 1
who works with the USDA’s
Natural Resources Conserva-
tion Service in Portland. “This
is such a relief from last year.”
As of Dec. 29, nearly 7 feet
of snow had accumulated at
Timberline Lodge, elevation
5,960 feet, and it contained
21.5 inches of water, Koe-
berle said. The water content
now is greater than the 20
inches measured at the peak
annual snowfall in April 2015.
The past season’s Northwest
snowpack was largely gone
by May.
With three to four months
of additional snowfall pos-
sible this season, the region
may ease the grip of drought
that’s stunted crops, killed fish
and left forests and rangeland
dry and vulnerable to fierce
fires.
“This is a great way to
start,” Koeberle said. “To be
already better than last year is
a little bit comforting.”
The NRCS maintains 730
SNOTEL monitoring sites in
11 states, 82 of them in Ore-
gon, that electronically report
snowfall and water content
information. The Oregon sites
as of the end of December
were reporting water levels
that were 150 percent of nor-
mal for that date.
Last year, nearly half of
Oregon’s long-term monitor-
ing sites measured the lowest
snowpack level on record.
Koeberle led a news me-
dia tour Dec. 29 of the SNO-
TEL site near Timberline, and
demonstrated how hydrolo-
Eric Mortenson/Capital Press
Julie Koeberle, left, and Dan Fries, both with the U.S. Natural
Resources Conservation Service, record snow depth and water
content readings taken Dec. 29 near Timberline Lodge on Mount
Hood.
gists take samples of the snow
and weigh it to measure water
content. The same informa-
tion is available electronical-
ly, but the annual media event
gives hydrologists an oppor-
tunity to discuss the water
supply outlook.
Because of the December
snow, the water supply in
most of the state is likely to
improve this coming year. But
Koeberle said it’s too early to
declare the drought over.
Some complications re-
main. The National Weather
Service’s Climate Prediction
Center (CPC) said the rest
of the season will be warm-
er than normal in the Pacific
Northwest and Northern Cal-
ifornia.
Koeberle said the region
may have “dodged the El
Niño bullet” for now.
“Normally, during most
El Niños, it would be warm
and dry and we just would not
have gotten any precipitation
at all,” she said by email. “I
am concerned that January
could bring us warm and dry
conditions based on the CPC
forecast.”
the county seat of Harney
County, where the Hammonds
live. Bundy said the Ham-
monds are being persecuted by
a land-grabbing federal gov-
ernment and that their case was
“in many ways more important
than the Bundy Ranch.”
In an earlier video, Ammon
Bundy said, “I feel justified in
defending the Hammonds, even
they don’t have the strength and
courage right now to stand for
themselves.”
The Hammonds’ attorney,
Alan Schroeder, said Wednes-
day that the Hammonds ap-
preciate the support they’ve
received from groups and in-
dividuals, but reaffirmed that
militia members do not speak
for them and that they intend to
serve their time.
Montana resident Ryan
Payne, an associate of Bun-
dy’s and who participated in
the tense standoff with federal
officials at the Bundy Ranch,
said Wednesday he hoped the
Hammonds will reconsider and
accept “protection.”
“They’re not in prison yet,”
Payne said.
Payne said he expected “a
lot” protesters Saturday. Or-
ganizers have asked protesters
to bring pennies, nickels and
dimes to toss at a county of-
fice building to symbolize how
county authorities have “sold
out” the Hammonds by not of-
fering refuge.
Harney County Judge Steve
Grasty said he’s highly sympa-
thetic to the Hammonds and be-
lieves their sentence was too se-
vere. But militia groups’ anger
at county officials over a feder-
me. I don’t know why we’re
suddenly the bad guys,” he
said.
He said militia members
have come into the county,
openly carrying firearms and
creating an intimidating atmo-
sphere.
“I can’t get in and out of
Safeway in less than an hour
because people are stopping
and asking me about it,” Grasty
said. “I just can’t discern local
support for what they’re doing,
with very little exception.”
Payne and Ammon Bundy
recently spoke at a meeting in
Harney County attended by
about 60 people, mostly local
residents. From that meet-
ing emerged a new group, the
Harney County Committee of
Safety, with the stated mission
of safeguarding individual lib-
erties.
Committee member Melodi
Molp, a Harney County ranch-
er, said Bundy “kind of woke a
bunch of us up.”
The committee, however,
planned to meet Wednesday
evening to discuss its relation-
ship with outside militia mem-
bers.
“The Bundy group seems to
be rubbing quite a few people
the wrong way,” she said.
Their tactics may be too ag-
gressive for a county heavily
dependent on government em-
ployment, Molp said. “Bundy’s
direction would put more than
half of the people in this county
out of a job,” she said.
Molp said she planned to
watch but not take part in Sat-
urday’s rally. “I’m hesitant to
participate. I’ve never been to
like to see,” she said.
Payne said that if the local
committee asks outside groups
to leave, “I think we’d have to
have a conversation.”
Payne said the issue was im-
portant to the entire country, not
just Harney County residents.
“If we allow this to happen
then the federal government
will be encouraged to label any-
one a terrorist,” he said.
The Hammonds were con-
victed of arson in 2012 after a
two-week jury trial. Both were
found guilty of starting a 139-
acre fire in 2001. According to
the U.S. Justice Department,
Steven Hammond said he
started the fire on private land
to burn invasive plants and it
spread to public lands. Pros-
ecutors said the fire was set
to cover up deer poaching on
BLM land. Dwight Hammond
also was convicted of setting a
backfire in 2006 that burned 1
acre of public land.
The Hammonds originally
received much shorter sentenc-
es from a U.S. District Court
judge, who said the mandatory
minimum sentence of five years
was far too long. The lenient
sentences, however, were over-
turned by the U.S. 9th Circuit
Court of Appeals, leading to the
Hammonds’ resentencing.
Harney County Farm Bu-
reau President Rusty Inglis
said he doubts outside militia
groups will generate much lo-
cal enthusiasm.
“We don’t support them,
simple as that,” he said. “I hope
they have their little rally and it
stays peaceful and nobody gets
hurt,” he said.