On August 28, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed four agriculture-related bills into law, for which New York Farm Bureau (NYFB) has been actively advocating.
“Today is another win for farmers across New York State, as the playing field continues to level among farming industries. We particularly commend Gov. Hochul for granting the same crop loss protections to wineries that breweries and cideries have,” said New York Farm Bureau President David Fisher.
The bills are:
•S9232: Allows the state to provide a crop loss determination for apples used in the production of New York-labeled cider for farm wineries that are producing New York-labeled cider. Without this legislation, only farm breweries and farm cideries can benefit from a crop loss determination. The bill grants the same protection to farm wineries that are also licensed to produce New York-labeled cider, which allows them to purchase out-of-state goods to make New York–labeled products if they receive a crop loss determination.
•A6821: Allows for the leasing of state land, for up to 10 years, for the purpose of tapping trees and sap production. Without this bill, maple producers can only lease state land for five years.
•A7020: Renames the Young Farmer Advisory Board to the Beginning Farmer Advisory Board, along with expanding the membership of the board and changing the requirement for an annual report to a biennial report.
•A10110: Defines “rescue” and clarifies that the entities participating in rescuing domestic animals, including cattle, swine, horses, cervids, camelids, sheep or goats, would be required to have a Domestic Animal Health Permit. Entities that have this permit are responsible for keeping records of transactions from adoptions to sales, leases and gifts of animals that enter their facilities.
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