REALLY -HEW LEGISLATURE
tPage 3
Director of the Morrow Soil and Water Conservation
District are pictured from left, George Kenney, treasurer;
Ken Turner, chairman; Dick McElligott; and Rudy
Bergstrom, vice-chairman. Other directors include Ned
Clark, secretary; Everett Struckmeier, and Jack Copenhav-er.
Soil conservation is the I
lifeline to the future t
Morrow County j
Abstract & Tille Co. )
Conservation matters ... . 1 !
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WOHNDIIItli
Green line, Inc.
The Dalles, 2937 E. 2nd St. I'
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orrow County j
Farm Service i
2 Fertilizers and Farm
Chemicals 1
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5 Boardman Heppner
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By George Keaney
Hie proper definition for
conservation is "the wise
utilization of a natural re
source", not the boarding or
saving of it. Because the Soil
and Water Conservation Dis
tricts make up a strong lobby
in our state; we are in a
i position to conserve a third
resource: The Independent
' American farmer. Instead of
being wisely utilized, the
young farmer has been locked
away by economic circum
stances until the average age
of the American farmer is 55
years old.
Current proposed Oregon
legislation which would ban
corporate farming may have
an affect on established farm
ers trying to stay in business
but would do nothing to help
the young farmer wanting to
get into business.
The kind of legislation that
could really help was intro
duced in the U.S. Senate about
the first of November by Sen.
George McGovern of South
Dakota and co-sponsored by II
other senators including Sen.
Mark Hatfield.
This bill, called the "Young
Farmer Homestead Act of
1975" would facilitate the
following:
1. Create a Federal Farm
Assistance Corporation to
purchase farms at prices
based on appraisals by the
Farmers Home Administra
tion. . .
2. FHA would lease the farm
to the young farmer up to
seven years for cash rent
based on real estate taxes plus
interest on the farm.
3. The young farmer would
have the option of bailing out
or buying the land with FHA
or private financing. The
purchase price would be the
original cost plus 75 per cent of
the appreciation. Presumably
the 25 per cent increase in
value would be due to the
renters own work.
The best point the bill has is
that if handled correctly, the
program would cost the tax
payer nothing. The agency
would recover its investment
when sold to the young farmer
plus 75 per cent of the capital
appreciation.
There are problems with
this bill of course. One, a low
appraisal by the FHA (which
is currently the case) would
result in no land being bought.
A high appraisal would be
unfair competition for inde
pendent land buyers.
Something must be done to
help young farmers get
around a start-up cost, esti
mated by some economists to
be as high as $250,000 and this
bill just may be it. Surely the
anti-corporation bill is putting
the cart before the horse when
the only alternative left to
many farmer's sons is to go to
work for the corporate farms.
The Young Farmer Home
stead Act is something positive.
B & C REPAIR
EQUIPMENT DEALERS
Cleo Childers
lone, Ore.
Conservation includes
pest control .. .
Dobyns Pest Control
422-7180
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COVERAGE
1 Turner. Van Marter & Bryant
I Insurance
1
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Heppner, Ore.
CAN WE HELP?
Dozers-Graders-Scrapers for
Diversion and Ditch
Maintenance
Land Leveling Silt Dams
Jim Phegley
Heppner, Ore. 676-5034
Morrow County can be proud
of the achievements made by
the Soil & Water Conservation
District.
We'dliketo
1 get to know
you.
FIRST NATIONAL BANK
OF OREGON
HEPPNER BRANCH