Archive for month: February, 2021

On 2/26/21 the Senate Natural Resources Committee passed the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill (SB 180) 7-5. SB 180 is now moving to the Senate floor and will go up for vote in the next week. We need your help to make sure Montana’s senators vote in favor of soil health and pass SB 180.

You can find your elected officials and their contact information by visiting https://leg.mt.gov/legislator-lookup/.

Please call your senator and ask them to support the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill (SB 180). Below is an example script you can use. We encourage you to personalize it before contacting your senator. Every call helps to pass this bill through the Senate floor.

“Hello, my name is [YOUR NAME] and I live in [INSERT YOUR TOWN HERE]. I am calling to ask you to support the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill, SB 180. Healthy soils allow farmers and ranchers to keep more money in their pockets, build resilient farms and food systems, and protect water quantity and quality. Keeping soil healthy is especially important to Montana, where agriculture is a leading industry. The task force proposed in SB 180 can address the unique needs of and challenges faced by Montana’s producers as they work to scale up the use of soil-building practices. Investing in a soil health study will lead to a stronger and more resilient Montana.

Please support the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill, SB 180 and ensure it passes through the full Senate. I appreciate your time and consideration.”

Tips for calling your representatives:

• Let them know that you are a constituent. Be sure to say the community you are from. Elected officials are most interested in your opinions if you are their constituent.
• Know your facts. Be sure you have the basic information about your topic in front of you when you call. You should be able to specifically describe the topic about which you are calling and state your opinion on what your legislator should do. To learn more about SB 180, please visit http://www.growmt.org/policy. 
• Add your own words. The provided script is useful, but you should make the phone call as personal as possible. Representatives and staffers want to hear your individual story and how the issue impacts you on a personal level.
• Note your expertise. If you have professional experience with the issue you are calling about, be sure to mention it (e.g. farmer, rancher, member of an agriculture organization, etc.). This will establish your credibility on the issue and may even prompt the aide to ask you for some guidance on the issue.
• Be brief. Elected officials receive a high volume of phone calls every day, so keep your call short and to the point.

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We encourage you to call your senators—it’s one of the most powerful ways you can weigh in on SB 180. However, if you prefer to write to your elected officials, please contact them through this form to ask for their support the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill. Below is a template you can use. We recommend you personalize it before sending it to your senators.  

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Dear Senator [INSERT YOUR ELECTED OFFICIAL HERE]:

I live in [INSERT YOUR TOWN HERE] and am writing to ask you to support the passage of the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill (SB 180).

Healthy soils allow farmers and ranchers to keep more money in their pockets, build resilient farms and food systems, and protect water quantity and quality. Keeping soil healthy is especially important to Montana, where agriculture is the leading industry. While federal programs support the adoption of soil-building practices, state leadership can address existing gaps and provide for the unique needs of and challenges faced by Montana’s producers to scale up the use of soil-building practices. The task force established through this bill will identify those gaps and provide recommendations for how to close them so that Montana’s farmers and ranchers get the resources they need, the way they need them. 

The Soil Health Subcommittee Bill builds upon important work that has already been done in the state by:

• Establishing a task force made up of 16-members to make recommendations on the role of a state soil health program.
• Involving broad public input from stakeholders for feedback on local needs and the best ways to address them.
• Assessing soil health conditions and researching soil health programming and resources in Montana to identify the most effective ways to invest in our state’s soil health.
• Reporting findings and recommendations for protecting and building soil health in Montana.

Soil is one of our greatest natural resources. The thoughtful approach to soil health proposed in the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill (SB 180) will address necessary economic, environmental and agricultural issues and lead to a stronger and more resilient Montana.

Please support the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill (SB 180) and ensure it passes through the Montana Senate. I appreciate your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

[NAME]

[ADDRESS]

On 2/17/21 the Senate Natural Resources Committee held a hearing on the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill SB 180, and now we need your help to make sure senators on the committee vote in favor of soil health:

• Jeffrey Welborn (SD 36) in Dillon, MT: (406) 949-6070 or (406) 988-0090
• Jason Small (SD 21) in Busby, MT: (406) 690-0923
• Duane Ankney (SD 20) in Colstrip, MT: (406) 740-0629 or (406) 748-4328
• Bob Brown (SD 7) in Thompson Falls, MT: (406) 242-0141
• Jill Cohenour (SD 42) in Helena, MT: (406) 227-1144
• Bruce Gillespie (SD 9) in Ethridge, MT: (406) 949-4453
• Tom Jacobson (SD 11) in Great Falls, MT: (406) 868-9814
• Brian Hoven (SD 13) in Great Falls, MT: (406) 761-8533 or (406) 899-5000
• Mike Lang (SD 17) in Malta, MT: (406) 654-7357
• JP Pomnichowski (SD 33) in Bozeman, MT: (406) 587-7846

Please call your Senator and ask them to support the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill, SB 180. Below is an example script you can use. We encourage you to personalize it before contacting your Senator. Every call helps to pass this bill through committee.

“Hello, my name is [YOUR NAME] and I live in [INSERT YOUR TOWN HERE]. I am calling to ask you to support the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill SB 180. Healthy soils allow farmers and ranchers to keep more money in their pockets, build resilient farms and food systems, and protect water quantity and quality. Keeping soil healthy is especially important to Montana, where agriculture is a leading industry. The task force proposed in SB 180 can address the unique needs of and challenges faced by Montana’s producers as they work to scale up the use of soil-building practices. Investing in a soil health study will lead to a stronger and more resilient Montana.

Please support the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill (SB 180) and ensure it passes through the Senate Natural Resources Committee. I appreciate your time and consideration.”

Tips for calling your representatives:

• Let them know that you are a constituent. Be sure to say the city and state you are from. Elected officials are most interested in your opinions if you are their constituent.
• Know your facts. Be sure you have the basic information about your topic in front of you when you call. You should be able to specifically describe the topic about which you are calling and state your opinion on what your legislator should do. For specific information on SB180, visit our policy page.
• Add your own words. The provided script is useful, but you should make the phone call as personal as possible. Representatives and staffers want to hear your individual story and how the issue impacts you on a personal level.
• Note your expertise. If you have professional experience with the issue you are calling about, be sure to mention it (e.g. farmer, rancher, member of an agriculture organization, etc.) This will establish your credibility on the issue and may even prompt the aide to ask you for some guidance on the issue.
• Be brief. Representatives and their offices receive a high volume of phone calls every day, so keep your call short and to the point.

On 2/17/21 the Senate Natural Resources Committee is holding a hearing on the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill S180. The Grow Montana Food Policy Coalition is supportive of the bill, which was drafted with the input of many soil health experts, growers, and advocates, and now, we need your help passing the bill out of the Natural Resources Committee!

Healthy soil grows healthy food, protects the environment, keeps more money in farmers and ranchers’ pockets, and holds more water, which is critical weathering future droughts. We can support Montana’s farmers and ranchers working to build healthy soil, and the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill creates a pathway to help make that happen.

The Montana Soil Health Subcommittee Bill will  create a soil health task force comprised of experts from research institutions, conservation districts, Tribes, scientists, farmers and ranchers, advocacy organizations, and more, to explore how Montana can promote and support farming and ranching methods that improve soil health.  Key components of the bill include:

• Diverse Task Force: The bill will create a 15-member task force to make recommendations on the role of a state soil health program, its objectives, and how it would function.
• Public Involvement: The task force will invite broad public input from stakeholders across the state to solicit feedback on local needs and how best to address them.
• Research and Assessment: The task force will explore the state of Montana’s soils, identify which soil building practices are most appropriate for widespread adoption, and report what kinds of investments (data and research, technical assistance, etc.) Montana’s farmers and ranchers need to build more healthy soil.  
• Reporting: The task force will share findings and recommendations for a state soil health program by September 2022.

As Montana’s 67^th legislative session continues, we need to take action to ensure our representatives recognize the importance of soil heath and invest at the state-level.  

We need your help today! Please visit https://leg.mt.gov/legislator-lookup/ to find your elected officials and contact them to ask for their support the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill. Below is a template you can use. We encourage you to personalize it before sending it to your Senate member.  

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Dear Senator [INSERT YOUR ELECTED OFFICIAL HERE]:

I live in [INSERT YOUR TOWN HERE] and am writing to ask you to support the passage of the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill (SB 180). This bipartisan legislation introduced by Senator Pat Flowers and Butch Gillespie is being considered by the Natural Resources Committee on 2/17/21.

Healthy soils allow farmers and ranchers to keep more money in their pockets, build resilient farms and food systems, and protect water quantity and quality.[MA1]  Soil is the foundation for agriculture, and it plays a critical role in protecting the air we breathe, water we drink, and food we eat. Keeping soil healthy is especially important to Montana, where agriculture is the leading industry. While federal programs support the adoption of soil-building practices, state leadership can address existing gaps and provide for the unique needs of and challenges faced by Montana’s producers to scale up the use of soil-building practices.  The task force established through this bill will identify those gaps and provide recommendations for how to close them so that Montana’s farmers and ranchers get the resources they need, the way they need them.  

The Soil Health Subcommittee Bill builds upon important work that has already been done in the state by:

• Establishing a diverse task force made up of 15-members to make recommendations on the role of a state soil health program.
• Involving broad public input from stakeholders for feedback on local needs and the best ways to address them.
• Assessing soil health conditions and researching soil health programming and resources in Montana to identify the most effective ways to invest in our state’s soil health.
• Reporting findings and recommendations for protecting and building soil health in Montana.

Soil is one of our greatest natural resources. The comprehensive approach to building a state-wide soil health program proposed in the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill will address necessary economic, environmental and agricultural issues and lead to a stronger and more resilient Montana.

Please support the Soil Health Subcommittee Bill (SB 180) and ensure it passes through the Senate Natural Resources Committee. I appreciate your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

[NAME]

[ADDRESS]

Double SNAP Dollars is a Win-Win for Families, Farmers and the Economy:

• Farms: Nearly 50% of farms in Montana are small farms less than 180 acres. Double SNAP Dollars helps these farms reach more customers. Double SNAP Dollars operates at 26 sites across 13 Montana counties, directly benefiting Montana farmers.
• The Economy: SNAP is an effective economic stimulus, with each dollar generating between $1.50 and $1.80 in economic activity (5). Since 2015, $500,000 has been spent on local foods through Double SNAP Dollars, representing an economic impact of up to $895,000. With the requested investment in state funds, that economic impact could increase by an additional $358,000.
• Families: 6,000 low-income Montanans have benefited from the program since 2015. In a survey of 140 Double SNAP participants, 96% reported consuming a greater amount of fresh fruits and vegetables as a result of the program. Improved access to nutrition means: 1) children are better learners, 2) seniors and people with disabilities have better health outcomes, and 3) reduced healthcare spending in Montana.

Learn More Here: https://mfbn.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/DSD-Advocacy-Fact-Sheet-2021.pdf