GFB News Magazine

Impact Funds will help GFB improve engagement with legislators

Posted on March 3, 2022 12:00 AM

By Tom McCall

Most legislators have very little, if any, firsthand knowledge about farm issues. That is not going to change if current demographic trends continue, and all indications are pointing that way. But this fact does not mean non-farm legislators have no interest in agriculture. It simply means that we, as farmers and ag leaders, must improve our methods of legislative engagement so that our voices are heard.   

Georgia Farm Bureau took a major step in that direction during the 2021 GFB Annual Convention when all 648 delegates voted unanimously to create a federal and a state political action committee (PAC). I was proud of that overwhelming show of support, and the PACs will become an important tool to help our organization support solid candidates who will stand with Georgia agriculture.   

I want to thank my friend Chatham County Farm Bureau President Ed Zipperer for his unwavering call to establish the GFB PACs.  On the floor of the convention, before the vote was taken, President Zipperer made his county Farm Bureau the first contributor to the PACs. I am asking other county Farm Bureaus and leaders to follow Mr. Zipperer’s lead and invest in the PACs.

As farmers, we sometimes think if we go about our business of growing crops and livestock, things away from the farm will take care of themselves. I’m not sure that was ever true, but it is certainly not true today.  We must be involved in things off the farm that affect us.

I have often said that I did not inherit my farm from my parents; I am borrowing it from my children and grandchildren. To preserve our farms for the next generation, advocacy must be a major part of our business model. 

The PACs will be called the ‘GFB Federal Impact Fund” and the “GFB State Impact Fund.” They will be another tool to support the candidates and initiatives that support our way of life. Please consider making an investment in agriculture by contributing to the GFB PACs.      

Thank you for allowing us to serve you.