KS HB2099 Hearing scheduled for 2/8/11

[The Tin Mom]

I got this email from Noah Goddard. Wanted to post it here:

We need your help to defeat this bill. Everyone who can possibly make it needs to show up for this meeting and bring other goat breeders with you. The meeting is in the Docking state office building room 783 at 9:00 AM on Tuesday, February 8, 2011. The Docking building is that office building just west of the Capitol.


Please plan to make this meeting on Tuesday.
Thanks,
Noah

Noah and Sue Goddard
Purebred Nubian Dairy Goats
Grade A Dairy and Cheese Plant, LLC
nubians@earthlink.net
www.goddardfarm.com



----- Original Message -----
From:
To:
Sent: Friday, February 04, 2011 3:23 PM

House Bill 2099 – Creation of the Kansas Goat Council – will be heard in the House Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee on February 8, 2011, at 9:00 a.m. in Room 783 in the Docking State Office Building.

If you would like to testify before the committee, please call Kay Scarlett, Committee Assistant, at 785-296-7694. Please provide 35 copies of your written testimony by 8:30 a.m. the day of the meeting.

If you have any questions, please call me at 785-296-7694.


Kay Scarlett
Committee Assistant

[Oat Bucket Farm]

I got the email too. Unfortunately, there is no way I can make it. Its a 440 mile round trip with only two days notice. I just can't do that right now.

[Kshobbit]

I am going. I am leaving the day before and getting a motel room as the roads down here are terrible. If you want me to say anything in your name please let me know asap as I have to make 35 copies. I do not mind doing this.
I tried talking to the KMGA president but he is adamant about not wanting to get the dairy goat or anyone's input. Apparently if any of his members are against him, he has a proposal for those mavericks to be kicked out of his organization! That was his words too.
I will go to Topeka and try to help Noah Goddard to stop this proposed bill in it's tracks. I have written to my various state representatives plus a good friend is on the Kansas sheep and goat council (I did not know it even existed) and he will help us too.
All this is giving me a giant headache

[The Tin Mom]

Originally Posted by Kshobbit

I am going. I am leaving the day before and getting a motel room as the roads down here are terrible. If you want me to say anything in your name please let me know asap as I have to make 35 copies. I do not mind doing this.
I tried talking to the KMGA president but he is adamant about not wanting to get the dairy goat or anyone's input. Apparently if any of his members are against him, he has a proposal for those mavericks to be kicked out of his organization! That was his words too.
I will go to Topeka and try to help Noah Goddard to stop this proposed bill in it's tracks. I have written to my various state representatives plus a good friend is on the Kansas sheep and goat council (I did not know it even existed) and he will help us too.
All this is giving me a giant headache

Thanks, KShobbit!

[Oat Bucket Farm]

I am not sure what exactly to say other than I think this bill needs to be thrown out. I don't mind the .50 price on auction animals but I don't think it should apply to private sales. I want to know however, why we need a Kansas Goat Association, what is it going to do for Kansas Breeders, why we need to pay the .50 a head/sale, and what the money is going to go for, and why they don't particularly want dairy breeders opinions. I want to know all of that before they even consider drafting a new version of the bill. And when/if they draft a new bill, they need to make certain there is a good cross section of goat people on the council and that they have clear goals in regards to where the money is going and what they will be doing,improving,etc. I want to know its not just a bunch of cronies getting together to collect money to line their pockets or what have you.

I guess if what I just typed makes sense, then you can copy that and take it in my stead if you don't mind and its not too much trouble.

[The Tin Mom]

What Audra said!

Also, I have 9 goats getting ready to kid. If they all have twins and I sell all 18 kids, plus I sell 3 milking does - assuming this passes, then I will need to pay $10.50 this year, and file in every month that a goat sold. How many other goat owners are out there like me? I bet there are a lot.

How much is it going to cost to process my $10.50 payment spread over all of the months that I sell a goat? And the payments from all the other small farms? It is ludicrous and a huge disservice to the Kansas Taxpayer - before you ever get into the lack of representation for dairy and other non-meat goats. I can't imagine that anyone other than the KMGA guy and the people getting paid to process $0.50 pmts would be happy about tax dollars supporting this bill.

I can't make it, either. If the roads are okay, all three (human) kids have an orthodontist appt. - if the roads are bad, we can't get out of the driveway.

It is good to know that you are going! Be careful!