Washington Farm Bureau Newswatch

June 22, 2001

THE DOLE FOOD COMPANY ANNOUNCED THIS WEEK THAT IT WILL CLOSE ITS packing houses in East Wenatchee and Chelan Falls. (Wenatchee World, June 21) A spokesman said the company would finish packing fruit in storage from last year, but would not be accepting fruit from this year’s harvest. Dole, which purchased Wells and Wade Fruit Co. and Beebe Fruit Co. in 1989, handled about 3 million boxes of apples and pears.

THE LEGISLATURE THURSDAY APPROVED THREE PIECES OF THE AG TAX RELIEF package, including a bill to eliminate the state’s portion of property tax on farm equipment, a bill to eliminate the sales tax on approved animal pharmaceuticals, and a bill to provide tax exemptions and credits to help dairies comply with the Dairy Nutrient Management Act. The bills now go to the governor for his signature. 

TRENDWEST RESORT IS OFFERING TO TRANSFER 150 ACRE-FEET OF WATER TO THE communities of Roslyn and Ronald this summer so residents can continue watering their lawns. (Yakima Herald-Republic, June 22) Roslyn, which supplies water to Ronald and the Cle Elum-Roslyn School District, faces the loss of water for outdoor use if the Yakima County Superior Court sides with the Roza Irrigation District and limits water rights issued after 1905, when the Yakima Irrigation Project was created.  Trendwest, which has been buying water rights for a planned 6,000 home resort, has agreed to transfer most of its water rights for the summer to Roza and the Kittitas Reclamation District.

MARK REY, A FORMER TIMBER INDUSTRY LOBBYIST, HAS BEEN NOMINATED TO oversee the U.S. Forest Service and other environmental programs in the Department of Agriculture. (Gannet News Service/The Olympian, June 22) As undersecretary of agriculture for natural resources and the environment, Rey would be one of the Bush administration’s top advisors on the environment. He is currently GOP staff director for the Senate subcommittee on natural resources.

THE U. S. HOUSE THIS WEEK PASSED A SUPPLEMENTAL SPENDING BILL THAT     would provide $20 million for farmers in the Klamath Basin, but Democrats on the Senate Appropriations Committee stripped a similar measure from a companion bill. (Oregonian, June 22) The money is being sought by the Bush administration to aid growers who had their irrigation water shut off by the Bureau of Reclamation to benefit coho salmon and sucker fish. Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., threatened to filibuster the bill if Democrats did not agree to restore the funds.

THE U.S. HOUSE THURSDAY PASSED AN AMENDMENT TO A DEPARTMENT OF THE Interior spending bill that would bar development of oil or natural gas resources in national monuments, including Hanford Reach. (Tri-City Herald, June 22)  Washington’s three Republican House members, George Nethercutt, Doc Hastings and Jennifer Dunn, voted against the amendment, while the state’s six Democratic congressmen supported it.

THE WASHINGTON FARM BUREAU WILL SPONSOR A COUNTY EMPOWERMENT workshop on Wednesday, June 27, at the Spokane Airport Ramada Hotel. Speakers will include Karen Budd-Falen, attorney with the Budd-Falen Law Offices in Cheyenne, Wyo., and John Williams, Oregon State University extension agent for Wallowa County. Cost is $50, which includes lunch and county empowerment workbook. To register, call (800) 331-3276. For more information about Farm Bureau’s county empowerment program, call Dave Winckler, (509) 899-1795. 

Ó 2001 Washington Farm Bureau. NewsWatch is a daily update on news of interest to agriculture. Contact Dean Boyer, director of public relations, 1-800-331-3276 or dboyer@wsfb.com, to receive NewsWatch by fax or e-mail.