Oklahoma Students Become Lawmakers For A Day At The State Capitol

The Oklahoma Farm Bureau sponsored 4-H and FFA highschool college students for a two-day convention on the Capitol.  

College students wrote and labored on payments earlier than debating them on the Home flooring.  

The Oklahoma Institute for Baby Advocacy additionally partnered with leaders for the occasion. 

Statewide president of 4-H in Oklahoma Elizabeth Chambers encourages members to benefit from management alternatives like this.  

“Coverage may be very, essential to agricultural producers,” Chambers mentioned.  

The continued drought – making it exhausting for farmers and ranchers to make ends meet. 

“We’re in an actual tight spot. I do know that farmers and ranchers, rural Oklahoma, we’re used to having adversity,” mentioned Sen. Blake ‘Cowboy’ Stephens (R-Tahlequah).  

However what’s the repair when there’s no water? 

“You may solely pray a lot for rain,” mentioned Stillwater 4-H member Ryne Crosthwait.  

Highschool 4-H and FFA college students – making an attempt to supply a solution. 

“Assist with cash or hay as there’s a serious hay scarcity proper now…I don’t know precisely what the answer is true now, however we simply want some rain,” he mentioned.  

It is a query of economics.  

“In case your demand is excessive, your provide is low, your costs are out the roof,” mentioned Sen. Stephens. 

And questions with no solutions.  

“There are folks having to repay their livestock all over the place. Sure, it might be good to see a bit of little bit of reduction coverage, however there’s solely a lot that the federal government can do to assist us,” mentioned Crosthwait.  

The work of lawmaking is hard.  

“It is extremely, very exhausting to cross a invoice, is what I’ve discovered right here,” Crosthwait mentioned.  

“It actually opened my eyes to simply how exhausting it’s to make a legislation occur,” mentioned Lexi Zuniga, of Fairview FFA.  

However Zuniga introduced concepts to the desk anyway.  

“To decrease property taxes so one, smaller farmers can compete, and the producers, in the event that they don’t need to pay taxes, can decrease the costs for customers,” she mentioned.