I’m catching up with this week’s column as final week I used to be in Washington D.C. as a part of the California State Farm Bureau board’s go to with congressional leaders and different governmental companies.
I flew in just a few days early to go to with my sister Mia and her household, who reside in Alexandria, Virginia. We took in a Nationals baseball recreation together with attending a really memorable and galvanizing mass on the Basilica of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. The subsequent day I caught up with the opposite 14 board members and Farm Bureau workers for dinner and an replace on our conferences for the week.
Tuesday morning discovered us on the American Farm Bureau headquarters for our board assembly adopted by congressional visits to complete out the day. Congress was in session so a few of conferences had been with workers.
That night after dinner a few of us took benefit of touring the Capitol with Rep. Doug La Malfa, who serves on the Home ag committee from California’s 1st Congressional District, serving Northern California. We arrived on the Capitol round 9:15 p.m. on an attractive spring night in Washington D.C. It was actually inspiring to see the Capitol at night time and be a part of the tour.
The subsequent day our board was damaged up into teams specializing in points starting from commerce and provide chain, catastrophe mitigation and reduction, to immigration and ag labor. I used to be a part of the ag labor group, and centered our consideration on the present H-2A contract employee program together with the Farm Workforce Modernization Act.
California agriculture employs over 840,000 staff per yr. We want stability in that workforce which we don’t have now. The present H-2A program is pricey for growers and solely employs a small variety of ag staff wanted.
It limits their contract with one grower for a specified variety of months in a yr. It doesn’t actually deal with the wants of smaller farms or year-round manufacturing like what is required within the dairy trade, which is California’s prime commodity.
The Farm Workforce Modernization Act would add extra permanence and reliability to our ag workforce together with much-needed flexibility and streamlining into the prevailing H-2A course of. The Home of Representatives has already handed its model of this act, we urged the senators and their staffs to do the identical on their aspect.
We did fairly a little bit of strolling between the places of work of each the Senate and Home of Representatives. We did take the underground Capitol subway, now the up to date computerized prepare that connects the Dirksen Senate workplace constructing and the Rayburn Home workplace constructing with the Capitol. I believe the primary day I walked 5.5 miles across the Capitol going to numerous conferences.
Thursday morning discovered me on the Reagan Nationwide airport at 3:30 a.m. to catch a flight dwelling to San Luis Obispo through the Dallas-Fort Value airport.
Fortunately my connection at Dallas-Fort Value went easily and I used to be capable of make it dwelling to see our daughter Kathleen obtain the excellent scholar award from the Cal Poly Agribusiness Division that night at 5:30 p.m. in San Luis Obispo. An effective way to finish a busy week.
It was nice to spend time with my sister Mia and nephew Sam and I believe our congressional visits had been productive. We have to make the most of with the ability to inform our story in individual, particularly when we’ve an excellent story to inform.