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Saturday, Aug. 8, 1998
Having Guard haul hay among farm aid ideas
Sharp, Perry bring suggestions to assist producers
By ANNA M. TINSLEY
Scripps Howard Austin BureauAUSTIN -- Calling out the Texas National Guard to haul hay to cattle producers in areas hard hit by the ongoing drought was one of several ideas put before state lawmakers Friday.
State Comptroller John Sharp suggested four ways to help farmers and ranchers -- those hardest hit by the drought -- as he testified before a joint hearing of House and Senate finance committees assessing the financial impact of the drought.
``Our agricultural producers work hard to provide the food and fiber that the world depends on so heavily and yet often takes for granted,'' Sharp said. ``In return, the rest of us should explore all avenues within our power to find ways to help Texas farmers and ranchers.''
The drought also affects nearly everyone in rural or urban parts of the state, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Rick Perry told lawmakers during the committee meeting.
In rural areas, farmers worry about not being able to harvest current crops or plant new ones for next year and ranchers are selling off cattle because they can't feed them.
In urban areas, residents see the drought in less drastic terms: high water bills or once-green grass scorched brown, Perry said.
``But they will see more effects in the future,'' Perry said. ``In the short term, there will be a glut on beef at the supermarket because of a selloff (of cattle). . . . But this time next year, if this drought continues, there will be increased prices at the supermarket for beef.''
And the dairy industry is suffering as well, because cows aren't producing as much milk.
``In the long-term, (Texans) will see the impact of this drought and they will feel it,'' Perry said.
Sharp, a Democrat, and Perry, a Republican, are running for lieutenant governor, but Friday's hearing did not turn into a campaign debate.
Recent rain has given the state some badly needed relief, especially because all regions in Texas received below-normal rainfall from April to June.
But some parts of the state have gone nearly a month with temperatures of 100 degrees or more, causing at least 118 deaths. President Clinton has declared Texas a disaster area.
Early estimates show that the drought has cost Texas farmers more than $1.75 billion, which could have a ripple effect of more than $5 billion on the state's economy, Perry said.
Officials have said this year's drought may be a worse disaster for Texas agriculture than the drought of 1996, when farmers lost $1.9 billion.
The joint meeting of House members and senators was called by state Rep. Rob Junell, D-San Angelo, chair of the House Appropriations Committee, and state Sen. Bill Ratliff, R-Mount Pleasant who heads the Senate Finance Committee.
Junell and Ratliff said Friday that they hoped to get advice about what, if anything, the Legislature can do to help Texans through the drought.
Sharp proposed a four-point plan:
-- Picking up part or all of the tab for eradicating boll weevils from cotton fields. ``This will help Texas cotton producers protect the state's top cash crop in future years,'' Sharp said.
Funding for the program now comes from assessments against farmers within eradication zones.
Bob Stallman, president of the Texas Farm Bureau, said this proposal is one of several steps that could help farmers.
-- Removing thirsty scrub brush, which soak up a lot of water and prevent water from getting to the soil.
Hundreds of thousands of acres in Texas are covered with cedar, mesquite and cactus -- all of which consume a lot of water, keeping rainfall in brush-infested areas from reaching the soil. Sharp suggested putting state prisoners to work removing the brush.
-- Providing funding for soil and water conservation projects, ranging from planting cover crops to reduce erosion to improving grazing potential for beef cattle to establishing grasslands.
-- Using the National Guard to help deliver hay to cattle producers in regions hit hard by the drought, in coordination with county agricultural extension offices.
In some parts of the state, hay production has dropped as much as 90 percent and the statewide loss of hay production is estimated at $330 million, Sharp said.
In Oklahoma, Gov. Frank Keating has called out that state's National Guard to haul hay at state expense to cattle producers in southern Oklahoma who can't afford the cost of trucking in hay from out of state. They expect to do this through September, Sharp said.
State lawmakers already have asked federal officials to limit tax penalties for producers forced to sell off livestock, raise the level of drought assistance through a disaster feed program, revise loan limits and release more than 3.6 million Conservation Reserve Program acres in Texas for haying and grazing without penalties.
``Forecasters are telling us this (drought) may go on seven or nine more months,'' said Tom Millwee, state coordinator with the Texas Department of Public Safety's Division of Emergency Management. ``It is literally a war.''Post your comments about local news eventsFront Page || Main Index || News || Business || Texas || South Texas Outdoors || Birdwatching || Sports || Entertainment || Selena || Education || South Texas Attractions || World Wide Web