Sen. Jason Howell, R-Murray, recently participated in a meeting to provide state legislators with the latest information on hot agricultural topics, including the H5N1 Bird Flu outbreak, disaster resilience in agriculture, and PFAS, or "forever chemicals," in agriculture.
"The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) provides opportunities for state legislators to build bridges of understanding about what agriculture offers. Our recent meeting in Louisville also provided this opportunity. It was enjoyed by all of the attendees and allowed for conversations and relationship building between legislators, which will allow for further conversations after the meeting concluded," said state Senator Annette Sweeney, R-Iowa.
Louisville hosted the 2024 NCLS Summit, where more than 5,800 legislators and policy members from across the United States and its territories joined Howell and his fellow Kentucky lawmakers and staff to connect and collaborate.
The Agriculture Task Force, organized by NCSL, was created to examine state and federal agriculture policy issues. The task force helps develop NCSL agriculture policy, studies critical agriculture and rural development issues facing the states, explores policy options to address these concerns, and serves as a conduit for state legislative communication with Congress, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and other federal agencies.
"This task force is beneficial because it allows all of us to see what issues other states are dealing with, whether it be unique to one state or a common challenge," Howell said. "It's an honor to be a member of
this task force and the NCLS Agriculture standing committee. I have enjoyed working with colleagues nationwide to share Kentucky's efforts in agriculture in my capacity as Senate Agriculture Committee chair."Some of the attendees' key takeaways from this meeting include updates on the H5N1 Bird Flu outbreak, an overview of Ohio's and Minnesota's approaches to addressing recent infections in avian and bovine populations, and information about animal vaccine technology research and development and application practices, information about the economics behind agriculture disaster prevention and recovery, an overview of new federal agriculture disaster resources, and insight into the educational gaps around crop insurance.
NCSL is the leading bipartisan organization representing the nation's 7,386 legislators and over 25,000 legislative staff. NCSL also provides comprehensive 50-state research and analysis on various agriculture-related topics.
"NCSL is thrilled to have legislators from across the country gather to discuss new and exciting agriculture-related topics," said Benjamin Nasta, legislative director for NCSL's Natural Resources, Energy and Environment Standing Committee. "Bringing together bipartisan groups of lawmakers like this allows them to exchange ideas and learn from each other about how to tackle a wide range of issues."
NCSL is a bipartisan organization that serves the legislators and staff of the states, commonwealths, and territories. It provides research, technical assistance, and opportunities for policymakers to exchange ideas on the most pressing state issues. It is an effective and respected advocate for the interests of the states in the federal system.
