The session started off quickly last week. We are at the statehouse on a regular basis to keep the interests of the Idaho Cattle industry top of mind when policy decisions are being made. Don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions. --Cameron Mulrony Executive Vice President Idaho Cattle Association |
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Grazing Permittees Needed to Serve on State BLM RAC The Bureau of Land Management is seeking public nominations to the Idaho Resource Advisory Council (RAC). This citizen-based council advises the Secretary of the Interior concerning the issues related to land use planning or the management of the public land resources within the state of Idaho. The RAC consists of 15 citizens with diverse interests in public land management, including conservationists, ranchers, outdoor recreationists, state and local government officials, and energy industry representatives. The council provides advice to the BLM on public land issues. Nominees must be residents of Idaho and should demonstrate a commitment to consensus building and collaborative decision-making. Information about the RAC appointment process and a RAC application are available at https://www.blm.gov/get-involved/resource-advisory-council/apply It is important that ranchers and other individuals supportive of livestock grazing maintain a seat at the table on the RAC. If you are interested in serving a term on the RAC, please contact Karen M. Williams at 208-866-6438 or karen@idahocattle.org by January 20th. The deadline for RAC nominations is January 21st. |
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The 2022 legislative session has started with Governor Little’s State of the State Address and record-setting budget proposal. The governor’s proposed budget is reported to have something in it for everybody with historic tax relief, investment in education, transportation, agriculture, and natural resources. Meanwhile, the proposal strives to pay off all state debt while setting aside state rainy day funds producing a state reserve of 22% of the state’s annual budget, a number all financial advisors applaud as being of highest responsibility for state government. The budget is chalked full of wins for rural Idaho and Agriculture, including: - $60 million of investment in Career and Technical Education and Workforce Development Council
- $200 million to transportation deferred maintenance split 60:40 between state and local
- $200 million is made available to invest in local bridge backlogs which slashes about a third of the local bridge improvements needing accomplished throughout the state
- $35 million investment in our supply chain infrastructure entangling rail, air, and ports
- $95 million which can be applied towards aging infrastructure for irrigation districts
- $20 million made available for Agricultural Best Management practices to improve Idaho’s priority watershed’s
- $150 million of additional resources for state fire suppression in addition to fully reimbursing the past season's fire costs
- Strategically investing $225 million of federal funds for broadband infrastructure across the state.
- Leveraging $250 million more of federal funds for water infrastructure which includes raising Anderson Ranch Dam and recharge in the Upper Snake.
The governor's tax relief proposed seeks to place $1.5 billion back in taxpayers’ hands over the next 5 years by a 12% income tax rebate, lowering the top rate to 6%, and freezing unemployment base taxes. Meanwhile, this week, the first bill of the session was printed by the House of Representatives laying out tax relief as proposed by the governor’s budget and consolidating income tax brackets to four at new, lower rates: 1%, 3%, 4.5%, and 6%. Agriculture was also busy in the first week back to session as groups came together to receive reports from chairs of Resources and Agriculture committee chairs at Food Producer’s first meeting of the year. Additionally, the annual Ag-Allstars awards banquet was held recognizing those legislators who voted with Idaho Agriculture last legislative session. The 14 recognized included: - Representative Clark Kauffman
- Representative Laurie Lickley
- Representative Scott Syme
- Representative Linda Wright Hartgen
- Senator Kelly Anthon
- Senator Jim Guthrie
- Senator Mark Harris
- Senator Abby Lee
- Senator Patti Anne Lodge
- Senator Fred Martin
- Senator Jim Patrick
- Senator Mary Souza
- Senator Chuck Winder
- Senator Jim Woodward
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Governor seeks to remove greater-Yellowstone grizzlies from endangered species list Governor Mark Gordon has officially petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to remove the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) population of grizzly bears from the Endangered Species List. The petition, filed with the support of Idaho and Montana, affirms that grizzly bears, by all measures, have been fully-recovered since 2003. Read more here, from Sweetwater Now |
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Beef prices: packers, the supply chain and the future With rising costs across the board as a result of supply chain issues, labor shortages due to COVID-19 or higher prices set by processors, it’s difficult to point to a single reason that consumers are paying more for meat. Rising beef prices not only affect the finances of the local consumer, but also those of the ranchers. Continue reading here, from the Craig Daily Press |
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Biden announces key regional appointments for USDA, HUD Matt Gellings has been appointed as the USDA State Executive Director, Farm Service Agency in Idaho and Rudy Soto as the USDA State Director, Rural Development in Idaho. Read the bios for appointees and continued story here, from whitehouse.gov |
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Holiday Campaign Results Over the holiday season, Beef Checkoff dollars helped to ensure consumers had beef top of mind and center of table to celebrate time with family and usher in a brand-new year. Between November 7th and December 31st, consumers were reminded of beef’s delicious flavors and versatility with recipes and expert advice using a range of formats such as through online search and social media and with audio and video inspiration on television and streaming platforms. Early analysis shows that food, culinary and ag influencer content delivered on social media platforms resonated with consumers. These thought leaders published thirty-three posts, reached 947k consumers, and generated 45,788 engagements (clicks, likes, shares and saves) on holiday content. |
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To help consumers succeed in preparing their holiday meals, culinary experts dished up their top tips through a Holiday Roasting Video Series that ran on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. The series returned 32k in reach and video views, with 3k individuals engaging with the content. Similarly, the Pinterest channel featured recipes and ideas and delivered 100k clicks to learn more. |
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| | This Twitter post shared expert advice for preparing a holiday rib roast with a one-minute video clip. Paid advertising was another element that sparked consumer interest across several platforms including Google Ads, YouTube, MNTN (CTV), Hallmark, Spotify, Sirius XM, Nativo, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. The paid media ads resulted in 46.3 million impressions (this means the number of consumers who saw the content) 11.6 million video views, 231k clicks (to view recipes or visit websites) and 30k social media engagements (likes, shares, saves and comments). |
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The national holiday campaign is just one example of how Beef Checkoff dollars help to increase consumer demand for beef. You can help inspire more Idahoans to discover beef’s versatility and delicious flavors throughout the year. Visit and share IDBeef.org with your friends and family. We also encourage you to take advantage of the power of social media and follow, like and share IBC’s posts on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, All Recipes, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube! |
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Winecup L Cattle Co. Kirk & Stevia Webb Helmick Ranch BJ Family Cattle Sharon Hoffman Dryden Ranch Spring Creek Ranch D&L Ranch Rand & Rosemary Dixon Carlson Livestock Seven High Ranch, Inc. Charlie Stipe Ron & Vickie Ford Pendleton Custom Farming LLC Steven Miller Tim & Tina Shaw Neil Uptmor Farms Leonard & Naomi Wood Ellsworth Angus Ranch Soulen Livestock Company Thank you to all of our new & renewed members! |
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| Fed Cattle $2 softer than last week
Boxed Beef
Choice $14.30 higher
Select
$12.12/cwt increase Cows $2 lower to $3 higher Calves $1 to $4 firmer
Corn $0.10 lower on March futures |
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Garlic Butter Steak & Potatoes This one pan, hearty recipe is an alternative option for flank steak and infuses a garlic herb butter sauce on both meat and potatoes! View the recipe here, from eatwell101 |
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