The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) today, including a shift in the cost-share from 50/50 federal government and Inland Waterways Trust Fund (IWTF) to 65/35 respectively. “The WRDA bill passed by the House of Representatives today includes a cost-share shift that will make the federal government a more significant partner in new lock and dam construction. Moving from 50 percent funded by the government to 65 percent funded by the government will enable new locks and dams to become a reality much sooner," said Bill Leigh, President of the Illinois Corn Growers Association. He continued, “Thank you to Representative Cheri Bustos for her leadership getting this cost-share shift included in the final bill."
The delegates of the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) elected Jim Raben, a farmer from Ridgway, IL representing the Illinois Corn Marketing Board (ICMB), as chairman of its Board of Directors at its 60th Annual Board of Delegates Meeting, held virtually on Tuesday. Additionally, Don Duvall, a farmer from Carmi, IL who recently termed off of the ICMB, will begin as an At Large Director on the USGC Board of Directors. Both Duvall and Raben have served the ICMB as Chairman during their tenure. “It’s always been my way to cultivate relationships because together we are stronger, our collective voices are heard more loudly, and we can work together to achieve our common goals,” Raben said in his incoming remarks.
Since 2015, pork and beef exports have been the fastest-growing category of corn use, delivering critical returns for corn farmers. The Illinois corn checkoff supports the international promotion of U.S. beef, pork and lamb by investing dollars in market development efforts conducted by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF). USMEF has released an updated version of the independent study aimed at quantifying the value red meat exports provide to U.S. corn and soybean farmers. The original study was conducted in 2016 with updates also released in 2018 and 2019. Key findings from the latest version, which utilizes 2019 export data, include:
This week, the House Appropriations Committee approved a FY21 budget for Energy and Water Development that would include funding for one new project for inland waterways lock and dam modernization. This signals the potential for a new start in the Upper Mississippi River Basin in FY21. The approved budget funds the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers $7.63 billion, a decrease of $21 million from FY20’s record-setting appropriated level, but $1.7 billion above the President’s FY21 budget request. The Inland Waterways Trust Fund funding level is $90 million for a total of at least $180 million in funding for Construction and Major Rehabilitation of inland waterways projects.
This week, the House Appropriations Committee approved a FY21 budget for Energy and Water Development that would include funding for one new project for inland waterways lock and dam modernization. This signals the potential for a new start in the Upper Mississippi River Basin in FY21. The approved budget funds the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers $7.63 billion, a decrease of $21 million from FY20’s record-setting appropriated level, but $1.7 billion above the President’s FY21 budget request. The Inland Waterways Trust Fund funding level is $90 million for a total of at least $180 million in funding for Construction and Major Rehabilitation of inland waterways projects.
For the third year in a row, the Western Illinois University School of Agriculture is partnering with the Illinois Corn Marketing Board (ICMB) to provide programming for high school agriculture classes across the state. Through the Soil Health Bucket program, 90 schools receive a five-gallon bucket of supplies for evaluating soil functions and a comprehensive curriculum for engaging students in employing the interacting impact of soil type and soil management. Topics covered in the curriculum include water filtering and storage, nutrient provision and cycling and conversion of crop residues into soil organic matter. The first year of the program, in 2018, an ICMB grant funded 40 buckets. The grant funding was increased in 2019 to include 50 more classroom buckets.
Today, Illinois Farm Families (IFF) released a third video in their “Innovation Grows Here” series, highlighting how Illinois farmers are planting pollinator habitat to build numbers of monarch butterfly and other pollinators. The video features Illinois farmer Don Duvall of Carmi, IL, who believes that planting pollinator habitat is just the right thing to do. “Pollinator plots are one of the things that are very easy for farmers to incorporate on their farms,” he said. “It’s like that adage, ‘if you build, it they will come.’ If you plant the pollinators, the butterflies will show up as well.” Jason Bleich, Conservation Specialist for Pheasants Forever and Quails Forever of Illinois is also featured on the video. Jason plants acres of pollinator habitat on his family farm in Ford County, IL. Other videos in the series describe the renewable, locally grown nature of biofuels in Illinois and highlight corn-based plastic as an alternative to petroleum-based plastics . Each is an effort to connect farmers and non-farmers and to promote conversations about their common sustainability goals. More videos are planned for the remainder of 2020. Illinois Farm Families is a coalition of the Illinois Beef Association, IL Corn, Illinois Farm Bureau, Illinois Pork Producers Association, Illinois Soybean Association, and Midwest Dairy.
