U.S. Cattlemen's Association Concludes Successful Capitol Hill Fly-In

USCA (July 27, 2010) – Leaders from the U.S. Cattlemen's Association (USCA) recently completed another successful fly-in. Ranchers had an action-packed agenda of meetings with high-level administration officials and Congressional members.

Bill Sauble, Past President of the USCA affiliate New Mexico Cattle Growers stated, “Estate tax reform was a hot issue during this fly-in. I was pleased with the response that we received from Congressional offices as they conveyed a desire to address this issue before Congress concluded its work for the year of 2010.”

“I was motivated to learn that the office of the U.S. Trade Representative has a legal team in place that is doing excellent work on the country-of-origin labeling (COOL) WTO case. I feel confident that this team is up to the task, and will convey the points that will dispel any opposing points to the COOL law,” noted USCA Affiliate Director and Past President of the USCA affiliate Independent Beef Association of North Dakota, Patrick Becker.

On Tuesday the House Subcommittee on Livestock conducted a hearing to review livestock and related U.S. Department of Agriculture programs. The hearing focused on the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration’s proposed rule to increase fairness of livestock marketing, members of the USCA fly-in delegation attended this hearing.

“It was great for USCA to have cowboy hats in the hearing room that represented the thousands of cattle producers from across the nation that support the work that USDA GIPSA is doing on this rule,” remarked USCA Director Emeritus Leo McDonnell. “We focused a great deal of our lobbying efforts on the Hill with regard to the fact that USDA GIPSA has a large amount of support in the countryside to enhance competition and livestock market transparency. There is a fair amount of misinformation swirling about on this issue, and this fly-in did a lot to dismiss these myths.”

USCA’s strong support for the Open EAJA Act of 2010, the U.S.- Korea Free Trade Agreement, improving the Beef Checkoff, and continued work on USDA’s animal disease traceability plan were also raised in the meetings.

“This was another successful fly-in,” commented USCA President Jon Wooster. “Every time I travel to Washington, D.C. I realize more just how important it is to meet and interact with Congress, the agencies and industry associations. When I look back at the time when we formed USCA, several folks wondered why we did it. This fly-in is a prime example. Issues like COOL, competition reform, and trade are at their peak and producers need to be at the table working to create a win for the industry. This is exactly what happened this week, and with the continued support from the countryside and pro-cattle producer champions in Congress and at the agencies, the best is yet to come.”

Established in March 2007, USCA is committed to concentrating its efforts in Washington, DC to enhance and expand the cattle industry’s voice on Capitol Hill. USCA has a full-time presence in Washington, giving cattle producers across the country a strong influence on policy development. For more information go to www.uscattlemen.org.