Congress has approved half of the budget bills needed to avert a government shutdown. And money is coming for Oregon’s Ag industry.
Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley believes they’ll get the final six passed by this Friday’s deadline. He’s pleased the first six include ag funding, with money for irrigation efficiency programs:
We’re looking at $3 million for Arnold Irrigation District, $2 million for North Unit, $3.5 million for Tumalo Irrigation District, all related to helping improve the efficiency and that’s primarily through piping.
He tells me Oregon’s diversity of crops means a tougher fight to do more than just shore up midwest soybean and corn growers. “The programs that support agricultural research and support insurance programs for a huge variety of crops are the types of things that are very important in our state.”
Among Oregon’s 14 community-initiated projects included in the ag funding package, there’s money for studying the impact of smoke exposure on wine grapes, researching hemp production, and crop insurance. There’s also 35- million dollars for watershed protection and flood prevention, which Merkley addresses in the video found here.