Dairy Connecticut An Act Concerning Dairy Farm Preservation This bill provides emergency funding to dairy farms. Four million dollars is appropriated to the Department of Agriculture, from the General fund, for continued emergency funding for dairy farmers.
SB1155 In Senate An Act Establishing a Milk Handler Fee System This bill would create a fee for the handling of milk contingent on the passage of SB1356 which would establish the Connecticut Milk Commission. SB1257 Currently in legislature An Act Concerning the Establishment of a Connecticut Milk Commission This bill goal is to provide for the long term viability of Connecticut dairy farmers. In doing so it would create the Connecticut Milk Commission and gives it powers to regulate the price of milk in the state. SB1356 Currently in the legislature Maine An Act To Raise Benefits for Farmers under the Milk Subsidy Program and to Prevent Price Gouging in the Sale of Milk This bill prohibits a retail store from selling milk for a price that exceeds by 10% the minimum retail price established for payment by consumers by the Maine Milk Commission. The bill exempts sales of organic milk and sales to consumers by producer-dealers from the prohibition on excessive retail pricing. The bill also includes interest and depreciation on machinery and equipment within the 3-tiered system of dairy stabilization support. LD 852 Currently in the legislature Massachusetts An Act Relative to the Licensing of Milk Pasteurization Plants Located within the Commonwealth This bill concerns the licensing of milk pasteurization plants within the state of Massachusetts. SB195 Currently in the legislature An Act Establishing the Open Space Preservation Fund This bill establishes a fund that makes grants available to existing and new dairy producers. The grants amount equal to the difference between the average net raw milk price per hundredweight received by producers and $18.00 per hundredweight multiplied by the average monthly production volume of each such dairy producer for the three years preceding April 2007. SB 484 Currently in the legislature New Hampshire An Act Relative to Assistance for Milk Producers This bill establishes and makes an appropriation for the emergency dairy assistance program. HB 407 Currently in the legislature An Act Relative to Milk Support for Dairy Farmers This bill establishes an emergency milk relief fund and imposes a dairy processor fee on milk sold in this state. SB 235 Currently in the legislature New York An Act to Amend the New York State Urban Development Corporation Act, in Relation to the Dairy Assistance Program This bill establishes a temporary Milk Disaster Assistance Program within the Department of Agriculture and Markets that will provide financial assistance to New York dairy farmers who suffered record financial losses during the 2006 growing season. A05444 Currently in the legislature An Act to Amend the Agriculture and Markets Law This bill prohibits any product enhanced with milk protein concentrates, caseins, or caseinates from being labeled as a dairy product. A01160 Currently in the legislature Vermont An Act Relating to Milk Revenue Protection This bill proposes to establish a grant program that will help dairy farmers take advantage of the federal Milk Revenue Insurance Product. HB 387 Currently in the legislature An Act Relating to Having the Cost of Picking up and Hauling Milk Paid by the Purchaser This bill allows The Vermont milk commission to establish by rule a minimum producer price that is designed to achieve a price by which the cost of picking up the milk and hauling the milk from the farm to the purchaser will be paid by the purchaser. Hauling and stop charges of milk loaded at the farm shall not be charged back to the selling dairy farmer. No additional charges shall be made, and no costs may be shifted from other benefits the farmer receives to contravene the purpose of this act. Nor shall any funds be transferred away from the farmer in paid producer differentials or any premiums the farmer would receive, but for this act. Each of the rules required shall take effect only if, by rule or legislation, New York and Pennsylvania have enacted substantially comparable provisions for their dairy farmers. S 78 Passed both Houses An Act Relating to the Viability of Vermont Agriculture Among the features of the bill: a measure to encourage the purchase of local food and dairy products at all levels of state government and at state-funded entities; a requirement that the state secretary of agriculture find ways to attract and retain dairy processors and develop additional in-state dairy processing facilities; and a waiver of state meat inspection requirements for farmers who slaughter fewer than 1,000 chickens or other poultry a year and sell directly from the farm, at a farmers’ market or directly to a Vermont restaurant. HB 522 Date: 05/21/2007 An Act Relating to Interim Assistance to the Dairy Industry and the Development of Long-Term Goals for a Viable Agricultural Sector The interim dairy assistance will pay the difference between target prices established by the secretary of the agency of agriculture, food and markets and the combined announced Federal Order Statistical Uniform Price for the Middlebury Location plus the amount of the MILCX payment rate on a per-hundredweight basis. HB 213 Date effective: 2/23/2007 An Act Relating to Dairy Hauling Fees and Stop Charges Per this bill the agency of agriculture, food and markets shall research and develop recommendations regarding charging hauling costs to the recipients of milk beyond the farm. This information may be used for presentation at the hearings to be held by the United States Secretary of Agriculture relating to the Northeast Milk Marketing Order, for the drafting of the 2007 Farm Bill. SB 226 Date effective: 5/9/2006 Miscellaneous Connecticut An Act Concerning the Administration of the Food Stamp Program To limit food stamp eligibility for able-bodied adults without children, and require, to the extent possible, that food stamps be used to purchase nutritional food products, as well as food products grown or produced in the state.
HB 5692 Did not pass An Act Concerning Appropriations to the WIC Program for Fresh Produce for Seniors To provide additional state funding for the WIC Program for Fresh Produce for Seniors. HB 5077 Did not pass Maine Resolve, To Study Maine's Agricultural Creative Economy Sector This resolve directs the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources, the Department of Labor, the Department of Economic and Community Development and the Department of Conservation to collaborate on a study of the creative, rural agricultural value-added sector of the State’s economy. LD 876 Currently in the legislature New Jersey Permits a farm income averaging credit under the New Jersey gross income tax This bill, as amended, provides New Jersey farmers with a credit against their annual New Jersey gross income tax determined by using income averaging (averaging out yearly gains and losses or varying levels of gains over a four-year period) from their farming business. The value of the credit is equal to the difference between a New Jersey farmer's income without four-year farming income averaging and with farming income averaging. The maximum annual credit allowed is $5,000. A1692 and S1425 Currently in the legislature Permits school districts to pay certain percentage price preference for "Jersey Fresh" and other NJ agricultural products This bill would provide that a school district may enter into a contract with a vendor to pay a percentage price preference, not to exceed five percent, for the purchase of “Jersey Fresh” and other agricultural food products and commodities grown or raised in New Jersey. A3930 and S2466 Currently in the legislature Funds the Garden State Agricultural Re-Engineering Program This bill appropriates $200,000 to the Department of Agriculture for the Garden State Agricultural Re-Engineering Program, which last received State funds in FY 2003. This initiative, managed by Rutgers’ Cooperative Extension in conjunction with the Garden State Dairy Alliance, provides farmers with educational opportunities and technical assistance in the areas of financial analysis and planning, risk management, crop insurance, milk quality, and animal waste management. A3932 and S2467 Currently in the legislature Community Farmers’ Market Study Commission This bill would create a 13-member "Community Farmers' Market Study Commission" for the purpose of examining methods and strategies for improving the access of urban residents to fresh agricultural and horticultural products grown or raised by New Jersey farmers. The bill would also require the Department of Agriculture, in consultation with Cook College, to conduct a study on the issue and economics of contract growing. Finally, the bill would require the department to establish a program to identify contract growing opportunities and educate farmers about them. In addition, the program would assist farmers in identifying and assessing the needs of local and regional fresh food market processors. A3933 and S2465 Currently in the legislature Creation of Agriculture Enterprise Counties This bill would establish a process by which a qualifying county could be designated as an "agriculture enterprise county" and thereby qualify commercial farmers located within the county to receive certain benefits designed to encourage, protect, and preserve agriculture. S346 Currently in the legislature New York An Act to Amend the Agriculture and Markets Law This legislation requires that all beef, lamb, pork, fish, produce and peanuts offered for sale in New York State be properly labeled with the name of the country it was originally produced. A1999 Currently in the legislature An Act to Amend the Social Services Law This bill removes depreciated assets from the gross family income of a self-employed individual operating a farm operation for purposes of determining eligibility for the family health plus program. A01301 Currently in the legislature Pennsylvania Healthy Farms and Healthy Schools Program This bill creates a program that incorporate create nutritional and agricultural education in school curriculum including farm visits, provide direct marketing opportunities for farmers, focus on locally grown products. SB 1209 Date Passed: 11/29/2006 | 
