Farm Bureau holds annual meeting

The Hot Springs County Farm Bureau had its annual fall meeting on Saturday at the VFW. Ray Shaffer said the meetings are where they elect officers and meet with their regular members to review resolutions and propose what will go on to the lobbyists for them to work with at the state and national level.

Officers elected include President Paul Ward, Vice President Carl Dockery, Treasurer Carl Shaffer and Secretary Carol Dockery.

The local bureau agreed to move three resolutions forward, Shaffer said. The first is the belief of the Hot Springs County Farm Bureau that Wyoming should be a closed primary system so that people can’t change their party affiliation in order to sway elections.

The second resolution addresses the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Shaffer explained when one leases with the BLM he or she is allotted a certain number of animal units (AUMs). However, he pointed out the BLM also manages wild horses and continues to cut back the number of AUMs for domesticated animals. Wild horses, he noted, demolish the land through overgrazing and knocking down fences, among other activities. Under the resolution, Shaffer said, the BLM would be accountable for damages done by the animals.

The third resolution addresses special interest groups and their shopping for courts, as the Farm Bureau believes the issues need to be adjudicated where they are raised. He gave the example of a special interest group going to Montana to overturn the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s decision to remove grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem from the endangered species list — bringing them under federal management — as a recent case of shopping for courts.

Shaffer said lobbyist Brett Moline, who is also the director of public and governmental affairs for the Wyoming Farm Bureau was also, present at the meeting and provided an idea of what’s coming in the next election. Ken Hamilton, executive vice president of the bureau, is also a lobbyist, Shaffer noted.

Saturday’s meeting saw about 30-40 people, Shaffer said, and the Wyoming Farm Bureau’s annual meeting in Sheridan is coming up Nov. 7-9 in Sheridan. The farm bureau has a grass roots foundation which, Shaffer said, gives people a real feel for what is going on in this country. He added the bureau is not too right wing or left wing but more right down the middle.