October 2023-Government Relations

October 2023 —Government Relations

Thank You for a Successful Fly-In

We had what was arguably the most successful National Farmers Union Fly-In that RMFU has had in recent history. Over thirty members and staff participated in the event this year to advocate for family farmers and ranchers. Members had the opportunity to hear from Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, meet with Members of Congress, attend an event at the White House, and connect with federal agencies around important topics like Right to Repair, Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling, the need to fully staff federal offices like the Farm Service Agency (FSA), and many other significant topics. We would like to thank the following people and agencies for taking the time to meet with us about the policy concerns for family farmers and ranchers: Senator Bennet (CO), Senator Hickenlooper (CO), Senator Lujan (NM), Senator Heinrich (NM), Senator Barrasso (WY), Senator Lummis (WY), Senator Kelly (AZ), Senator Rosen (NV), Representative Crow (CO-6), Representative DeGette (CO-1), Representative Boebert (CO-3), Representative Neguse (CO-2), Representative Pettersen (CO-7), Representative Buck (CO-4), Representative Caraveo (CO-8), Representative Lamborn (CO-5), Representative Leger-Fernandez (NM-3), Representative Vasquez (NM-2), Representative Hageman (WY), Representative Davis (NC-1), Representative Lee (NV-3), Representative Amodei (NV-2), Representative Ezell (MS-4), Federal Trade Commission Chairwomen Khan, the Office of Management and Budget, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Justice, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Labor, and White House Staff.

It’s Time to Think About Policy

County conventions are upon us and the RMFU Convention is just around the corner starting on November 16. Check out when your county convention is happening here. While conventions are a great time to reconnect with fellow RMFU members, learn about the exciting things happening within the organization, and elect officers, it’s also time to think about policy. RMFU has a grassroots policy process, which means you and your fellow members direct our advocacy efforts by telling us which policies you’d like us to support. There are several ways for you to address policies that you care about. Check out the Path Towards Policy document here for more information on how you can impact the policymaking decisions of RMFU. We strongly encourage you to bring your policy proposals to your county convention this fall. Please let Tyler Garrett (tyler.garrett@rmfu.org), Director of Government Relations, know if you have any questions or concerns.