Agriculture Committee
Testimony LB 320
February 8 2019
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Agriculture Committee,
The Nebraska Agri-Business Association would like to express our support for LB 320 as presented today.
Our Association represents manufacturers, distributors, retailers and applicators of agriculture input products to our state’s farmers and ranchers. Although no industry wishes to be over regulated, we believe scientific, common sense regulations are important for all stakeholders in the food chain.
We appreciate the Nebraska Department of Agriculture for their comprehensive review of the Pesticide Act and are agreeable with the changes that are continued in LB 320 to the Act. Most of the changes are to harmonize and provide language so that Nebraska statutes are compatible with current federal
regulation. We support this consistency regarding regulatory issues such as product labels and licenses and believe it will alleviate confusion and misunderstandings for the industry.
In Section 14, we support the 60 day exemption for licenses for commercial applicators. As the Committee is aware production agriculture is a seasonal industry that is dictated by weather conditions. Many of our retail/applicator members need the flexibility to realign and add new employees in short time periods. The exemption allows them to better manage resources when needed to ensure applications are completed when needed.
The Nebraska Agri-Business Association would ask the Committee advance LB 320.