by Clint Ziegler, Ohio Freedom Alliance
OLC Editor’s Note: As a follow up to our last article on the new taxes being proposed to fund the new Livestock Care Standards board, Clint Ziegler has found some additional details being proposed in the implementing legislation that are likewise troubling. We must hold this board and our legislators accountable on this issue and we must learn from our own mistakes in granting so much power to a new level of bureaucracy. As George Washington said: “Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master.”
As Issue 2 was being discussed prior to the November election, many questions were raised as to how this board would function, how it would be funded, and who would fall under its authority. We are now beginning to get the answers to those questions through the draft version of legislation to implement the constitutional amendment (Revised Code Chapter 130.01 Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board).
The draft version includes definitions (130.03) which details that all horses, regardless of the purpose for which the equine are raised, are considered livestock. In other words, every horse in our state will be under the board’s authority — along with all hogs, cattle, sheep, goats, poultry, alpacas, and llamas that are raised for human food products or for fiber. The list of animals may expand by the decision of the director. Only animals that are confined in research and medical facilities are excluded from the standards established by this board (130.04 (1)).
This board will be funded by tax money, no surprise there. What is a surprise is the once estimated cost to run the board of $170,000 has now grown to a minimum of $500,000 annually (923.46). Why the high cost? The board’s director has the authority to hire employees (130.05; 130.08) who will receive salaries and benefits. According to the current draft, the funds will be gathered through a commercial feed tax (923.44) called an “inspection fee”. Thirty cents per ton for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010; thirty five cents per ton for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2011; and forty cents per ton for all fiscal years ending after June 30, 2012, with a fifty dollar minimum payment. This means more paperwork for feed distributors and added cost to those who purchase feed. And let’s not forget the increased costs to consumers since farmers will have to pass their costs on to the consumer.
What has not been decided yet is how livestock operations (including all horses’ owners) would be regulated and inspected. Will livestock owners be required to submit records to the board annually? Will there be unannounced farm inspections to insure that the standards set by the board are being obeyed? What will be the fines or prison terms for failure to comply with the laws established by the board? We may soon know all the answers to these questions, but I’m afraid we will not like the answers. Ohioans are now on the road of state controlled livestock production; farming in our state will never again be the same.
2. February 2010 at 7:54 pm
Two concerns: I beleive the public should see the proposed budget – and a written justification of why the cost of the board has risen from $170,000 to one half million dollars annually. Second, the pooling of horses into the livestock category seems bizaare. Horses and livestock serve different purposes. Horse are commomly used for work, show or recreational riding. Given the proposal to add equine to livestock is the board going suggest that the primary use of horses is for food and fiber? I have not seen a lot of horse meat in the grocery shelves lately. Please give the equine a category of their own. Thank you for your attention and your consideration of my concerns.
3. February 2010 at 9:00 am
Now folks are concerned about ISSUE 2 and the creation of the livestock standards board. They register shock and surprise in learning that this is another piece of government; this is a bureaucracy. It will cost money. People will get jobs provided they are friends of politicians and/or connected to the system. We will pay for this new and highly unnecessary new bureaucracy with tax dollars. Where were you folks last November? Listening to Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck.
Why are we surprised? Read your history. Learn about the Ohio Department of Agriculture. They control food production along with the support of the USDA. These folks are paid with our tax dollars to control how we farm, how we produce food and what we can purchase for our dinner table. AND, they do all of this with the lie that they are concerned for our welfare and they are protecting us by providing safe food.
If the issue is food safety,why then is the industrial model of food production that our government supports and subsidizes responsible for the frequent out-breaks of food borne illnesses; illnesses that send thousands to hospitals and many to the grave?
We deserve what we get. If we give government the power to control us we cannot complain when we get the results.
I wonder if Liberty Council of Ohio protests against bad food from the industrial system? I wonder if they insist that only locally produced food from sustainable farms should be served at their meetings? If the Liberty Council wants to thwart the effots of the Farm Bureau and the Ohio Department of Agriculture they need to walk the walk as well as talk the talk. If you go to the drive through window you are supporting the enemy.
It’s the food my friends. It’s not just about taxes. Support real farmers. And it’s much more than listening to a demagogue like Glenn Beck or whacko like Sarah Palin. These are not leaders. These folks are entertainers, tabloid personalities.
Real opposition to ISSUE 2 begins with you and it begins at the dinner table.
3. February 2010 at 10:43 pm
Parker,
I’m no longer in Ohio but from what I know- Joe Bozzi- one of the Ohio Liberty Council leaders/founders advocates for local food and walks the talk. He’s in the Columbus area and I do local food has been featured at some of their meetings. He’s a founder of the Ohio Freedom Alliance also.
I’m disappointed that the Ohio voters voted for this board.
Thank you for your comments-
4. February 2010 at 9:37 am
I have enjoyed working with the Ohio Liberty Council since last summer. From my on-going interaction with the dedicated Ohioans assoicated with this group In my opinion, they would oppose intrusive, overbearing government regulation wherever that may be found. OLC would not “insist” people eat anything but rather desire to uphold their right to choose for themselves!! Just like the Dept of AG should not “insist” you grow your own food in a certain manner. We are a free people!! We should be free to choose whether or not we eat a McDonalds Hamburger or an organic vegie burger. And as far as your comment on where was the OLC last November… a quick Google search would reveal that the Ohio Liberty Council was working hard to present information on Issue 2 and was concerned early in this fight that this Board would be granted powers to far-reaching and outside of the checks and balances that we should have in our system of government. The cost to taxpapers, the over-reaching nature of this Board and the fact that it has done nothing to stop HSUS are no surprise. This article was simply meant to inform readers coming to the site that our valid concerns are proving true.