NCBA hosts cattlemen on Capitol Hill
Throughout the year, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) hosts multiple “Hats on the Hill” legislative fly-in events, where members from each region across the U.S. visit Washington, D.C. to meet with lawmakers.
During these visits, cattle producers work with NCBA staff to advocate for policies impacting the beef industry.
Despite the association’s full-time advocacy efforts and strong voice on Capitol Hill, NCBA Chief Executive Officer Colin Woodall notes nothing is quite as effective as having working producers there to speak for themselves.
“We find, year after year and time after time, when we have somebody from their home state or home district show up to a member of Congress’ office – somebody who is, at some point in time, going to make a decision on whether or not they’re going to vote for those individuals – all of a sudden the game changes,” Woodall says during a Sept. 19 episode of the association’s Beltway Beef podcast.
“This is why having producers in town, taking our masses to the Hill and talking about the hometown perspective really helps us be even more effective here in Washington, D.C.,” he adds. “These events are extremely important to the overall political strategy of NCBA and our role in being an advocate and voice for U.S. cattle producers.”
September fly-in highlights
NCBA held the last fly-in event of the year Sept. 15-17, welcoming cattlemen from Region Three who were mainly focused on tax provisions, trade, conservation program funding and animal health.
Several NCBA members – including former NCBA President Kevin Kester – had the opportunity to speak during U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson’s weekly press conference, where they thanked Congress for the One Big Beautiful Bill and discussed the importance of several ag-related provisions within it.
“They really focused on all of the tax provisions and, of course, leading this list is the relief we received on the Death Tax. Taking individual exemption to $15 million and couples’ exemption to $30 million, tying it to inflation so it grows over time and, more importantly, finally making it permanent were all tremendous wins, not only for the cattle business but for every small business out there,” Woodall states.
Other provisions discussed include continued funding for conservation programs like the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the importance of maintaining the “three-legged stool” of animal health.
“This includes the National Animal Health Laboratory Network and the work they are doing, especially when it comes to New World screwworm; ensuring the U.S. Department of Agriculture has the resources it needs for foreign animal disease preparedness and response and maintaining funding for the foot and mouth disease vaccine bank,” Woodall explains.
Looming government shutdown
With current federal funding is set to expire on Sept. 30, the looming government shutdown was also a hot topic among those on Capitol Hill during the fly-in event.
“Every September we face the question of whether or not the government’s going to shut down. We’re seeing it play out today, and we are already seeing action by the House of Representatives to keep it from happening,” Woodall states.
“We engage because we rely on so many federal programs we cannot see shutdown,” he adds. “One of the things that is top of mind every time we have this discussion is whether or not the Food Safety Inspection Service and federal meat inspectors will be deemed as essential and be able to remain on the job if the government shuts down.”
Additionally, Woodall emphasizes the importance of ensuring mandatory price reporting continues in the midst of a shutdown.
“We want to make sure those reports continue should we have a government shutdown,” he says. “In the past weʼve seen those reports go away. Not only does it have an immediate impact for the people who use this information to market their cattle, it also has a long-term effect because data sets that are missing due to government shutdowns impact historical trends.”
The impending shutdown comes on the heels of a stopgap bill passed by the House of Representatives on Sept. 19 to fund the government through Nov. 21. However, Senate Democrats rejected it, demanding legislation to undo recent cuts to healthcare programs.
“The federal government is on the brink of its 15th partial shutdown since 1981 because lawmakers have failed to agree on a plan for discretionary funding for the new fiscal year, or about one-quarter of the $7 trillion budget,” notes a Sept. 25 Reuters article written by Bo Erickson and Courtney Rozen.
Reuters and multiple other news sources report the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has been warning federal agencies to prepare for mass firings should the shutdown occur.
“In a late Sept. 24 memo, OMB asked agencies to identify programs, projects and activities where discretionary funding will lapse on Oct. 1 if the U.S. Congress does not pass legislation to keep the federal government open,” Erickson and Rozen report.
“The memo told agencies to submit their proposed reduction-in-force plans to OMB and to issue notices to employees if they are ultimately shut down. The memo also revealed shutdown planning the Trump administration has kept quiet about until now,” they continue.
According to the OMB memo, “Programs that did not benefit from an infusion of mandatory appropriations will bear the brunt of the shutdown.”
Federal funding is ultimately set to expire at midnight on Sept. 30 unless Congress enacts a continuing resolution or agrees to a full appropriations bill.
Although Congress is currently out of session, lawmakers are expected back on Sept. 29 to hammer out a deal.
Hannah Bugas is the managing editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.
