The Connecticut regular session of the General Assembly is over. Both bills that the Grange supported were passed by the legislature and are now on the waiting list for the Governor’s signature.

HB 5419, now Public Act 10-103, will allow farmers to make pickles and salsa in their home kitchen for later sale at their farm stand and farmers markets. House Bill 5446, now Public Act 10-92, will exempt agricultural fairs from the requirements of the Mass Gatherings Law because fairs work closely enough with their local officials such that all appropriate local agencies are informed of the dates well in advance of the dates they are held.

The Connecticut General Assembly moved $5 million from the Community Investment Act Fund into the General Fund to help balance the budget. The community investment act funds are divided into four equal amounts for farmland preservation, open space preservation, historic preservation and affordable housing. This means $1,500,000 was taken from the state’s farmland preservation program to help balance the budget. On the bright side, there were no new taxes imposed which would have been necessary without taking money from many other sources. Also on the bright side, the General Assembly did not take as much from the Community Investment Act funds as they took from several other special purpose funds.

The Massachusetts State Grange Executive Committee voted to co-sponsor the Massachusetts Century Farm book with the Farm Bureau. This book is about farms in Massachusetts that have been family run for at least 100 years. The Grange logo will appear in the book and on the signage being produced for the qualifying farms.

Matt Espenshade testified on behalf of the Pennsylvania State Grange at the Pennsylvania Milk Marketing Board’s Over Order Premium (OOP) hearing in June in support of extending the premium payment for Class I milk at the $2.65 per hundred weight level. Matt provided compelling testimony about the plight of dairy farmers forced to contend with depressed milk prices despite rising production costs. Even with past increases in the OOP and other cost saving measures on their own farms, dairy farmers are lucky to break even with the milk production costs. He highlighted the need for changes in the milk pricing system including changes to the Federal Milk Marketing Order to revamp the Dairy Product Price Support and Milk Income Loss Contract programs.