Rural Highlight: Jimmie Powell

In all of my travels across Texas, I never come home without a great story from a good friend. The Lone Star State is overflowing with entrepreneurial men and women, whose pioneering spirit has helped shape us into the greatest state in the Union.

Jimmie Powell is one of those men. A native Texan, Powell resides in San Angelo, where he manages several banking interests. Among other things, he is a former chairman of the Texas State University System Board of Regents, an investor, a philanthropist, and an Eagle Scout. Perhaps most importantly to Jimmie himself, however, he is a rancher.

When asked once by a newspaper what keeps him in the business [ranching], Powell said, “I have a deep desire to raise livestock and participate with others to provide a source of food for the people of the nation. In addition, I welcome the challenges to manage the ranch operations.”

Indeed, Powell has taken the challenges of ranching head on, with a vigor and determination that can only be admired. I had the opportunity to tour the country side with Jimmie one Wednesday afternoon in West Texas, and he wanted to drive out to the ranch and show me what he had been working on. Research has recently been performed outlining the effects of brush management on water shed recharge, and Jimmie Powell was determined to be part of the equation.

Across vast acreage of what was once thick brush county, Powell’s ranch has been transformed into beautiful pastures adorned by native grasses and wildflowers. Not only has his management of the land improved his cattle operation, but the repercussions of his actions are undoubtedly having positive impacts on the area’s water sources.

I salute Jimmie Powell and his commitment to agriculture and education. It is because of Texans like him that we enjoy a safe and affordable food supply, that our natural resources remain in the forefront of conversation, and that our long standing Texas heritage remains intact.

Open Season

The fall hunting season is just around the corner for most Texans. Even though it is hot this summer, hunter’s dreams are cooled with refreshing thoughts of dove, deer, duck and quail. For the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), it is open season already in Texas.

The Attorney General of Texas’ press release details how the Lone Star State developed a permitting system that has been in place since the first term of the Clinton administration, and how the Obama EPA shot it down even as new rules were posted which attempted to address the EPA’s concerns.

Folks, we must have good, sound environmental practices and policies, but we need transparent, open and STABLE regulatory approaches. We can have clean air and jobs for our citizens all at the same time. This is real. Just think of the lost jobs in the Gulf with the six month drilling moratorium the president issued (which was overturned by the courts). Two huge drilling rigs left our shores and went overseas where they were wanted…and jobs for our citizens went with them.

Let’s hope our court system will put some hunting limits on the EPA. We don’t want our jobs being indiscriminately gunned down.

EPA Crying Over Spilled Milk

Anyone following the news headlines these past two years must have noticed the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) aggressive agenda. From their costly designation of carbon dioxide as a pollutant, to the administration’s advocacy for dangerous Cap and Trade legislation, to the EPA not seeking to overturn the 6th Court of Appeals ruling that requires a duplicative permitting process for pesticide application (this makes your food cost more and doesn’t make it safer), labeling their agenda as aggressive may be an understatement.

Working with producers, it is good to see firsthand their dedication to conservation and their understanding of the need for clean water and air. It is no overstatement to say agriculturists are the original environmental stewards.

So you can imagine the dismay of all those involved with agriculture when the EPA is unwilling to agree the Clean Water Act (CWA) was not intended to regulate spills from dairy farms. Yes, you read that correctly. Because milk contains oil (animal fat) some are interpreting that the CWA applies to milk spills!

Even though many of the EPA’s recent proposals have had Democratic support, Senator Charles Schumer (D-New York) recognizes the CWA was never intended to impact dairy farmers this way and is calling on the EPA to stand down. For the millions of babies who drink milk with every meal, and all Americans who enjoy a nice, cold glass of milk or slice of cheese, let’s hope he is successful.

The Future Is Up To You

The first question: have you seen Obama’s abysmal approval ratings lately? The second question: is anyone surprised? The administration that was supposed to usher in a new era of “hope” and “change” has fallen short of providing the American people with the prosperity they deserve. In fact, the myopic, overbearing policies being implemented in Washington by the party in power will have regressive implications on our financial success far into the future, especially for agriculture.

When businesses across the nation are struggling to recover from a crippling recession, the Democrats have been pushing job killing cap and trade legislation. Finally, they have abandoned this crippling crusade, for the moment (think what they will do if the American people don’t rein them in this November).

Now is the time to restore confidence in investors, yet capital gains and dividend taxes will be escalated to detrimental levels if Democrats take no action. Companies are currently sitting on record amounts of cash; afraid to leave the sidelines for fear that their risks will be met by a barrage of regulatory weight. Logical, comprehensive financial reform could help our economy move forward into the future in a manner that protects consumers and promotes innovation, but instead Congress passed a bill that creates unnecessary bureaucratic red tape and punishes tax payers. If you don’t believe me, listen to the financial experts who know that our economy is once again precariously balanced on a dangerous tipping point.

President Obama and the Democratic Party are grasping for a limb, but their failure to provide solid leadership has come back to haunt them. November 2 is coming, and we have an unprecedented opportunity as Americans and Texans to regain our country and move it in a direction that encourages and promotes our free enterprise system – you remember, the one that built the most powerful economy in the world. Really, the future is up to you.

Rural Highlight: The Rocker b Ranch

As the campaign progresses, I want to highlight some out-of-the-way locales in Texas that capture the rich heritage of the Lone Star State. These places, and the people who inhabit them, have lively and colorful histories, but more importantly they have a meaningful impact on our state’s agricultural industry.

Just outside the small West Texas town of Mertzon (west of San Angelo), sits the Rocker b Ranch. The story of the Rocker b dates back to the days of the Goodnight-Loving Trail, before barbed wire fences were erected, and cowboys were still in high demand. Purchased by Senator William A. Blakely in 1954, the ranch would transform into something of great significance. In 1977, Senator Blakely donated the ranch to the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. The TSRHC, established in 1921 by a group of Texas Masons, treats children with orthopedic conditions at no charge to their families. Today, the revenues provided by the Rocker b go to support the hospital’s operations.

In April, I was fortunate enough to visit the Rocker b. Ranch manager Dennis Webb likes to run the ranch’s cattle operation the “old-fashioned way,” not just for nostalgia or romance, but because it’s the “right way” and happens to be the most efficient. At over 170,000 acres, the Rocker b is one of the largest ranches under one fence in the state, and that sure became apparent as we spent the morning gathering and working cattle.

The day began before the sun, with a traditional chuck wagon breakfast and good-natured ribbing by the cowboys. As the West Texas landscape came alive with the stunning light of dawn, we mounted up to gather a herd of cattle, accompanied by antelope, deer, and other native wildlife. Of all the things I witnessed that day, the most enduring was the attitude of the cowboys. These men, professionals in every sense of the word, knew that their work transcended that of mere cow punching; they were riding for a greater cause. The fruits of their labor not only benefit the consumers of Texas, but also support the functions of a great Texas institution.

I salute Dennis Webb and the cowboys of the Rocker b for their indomitable spirit and commitment to Texas agriculture. I think we could all use a little tradition, and the Rocker b Ranch is a place were the spirit of the West is alive and well. Is it any wonder they write books and make movies about Texas?

Health of the Nation

During the long, drawn-out debate over the Obama Administration’s health care reform legislation, we were repeatedly promised that there would be no new tax on the middle class. What the bill did do is create a new health care mandate that all Americans have to pay for. That sure sounds like a tax to me.

ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, himself a former Democratic strategist and aide to Bill Clinton, challenged Obama on this very point. Obama’s response? He said it “is absolutely not” a tax increase.

This mandate is not only unfair to hardworking Americans, who know better how to make their own health care decisions than the government, it is unconstitutional. Because of that, several states including Texas joined a lawsuit against the bill. They argue that the mandate simply isn’t covered by the commerce clause of the constitution.

Now, facing a very real possibility that they might not win, the administration is shifting tack. Rather than defend the mandate under the commerce clause, they’re defending it as a tax. In fact, they’re making that the key to their defense of the bill.

That kind of cynical power play is exactly what is wrong with this administration. Whatever happened to laying out your vision, being honest with your proposals, and then defending them on their merits?

In this economy, we don’t need more taxes, and we certainly don’t need more mandates on individuals. Many small businesses – farmers and ranchers among them – are already burdened by taxes, overregulation, and government mandates. They’re trying to stay in business. They’re trying to hire new workers, or struggling to keep the ones they have.

What Americans demand is a government they can trust, not one that talks out of both sides of its mouth. They don’t need a government to tell them how to live their lives, they need one that will get out of their way and let them live it how they know best.

Why It's Great to Live in Texas

Even in these tough economic times, Texas continues to outperform the nation. All signs indicate that when it comes to the recession, Texas was the “last in” and will likely be the “first out.”

In the first six months of 2010, Texas created more new jobs than California, New York, Florida, and Illinois combined! In fact, the Lone Star State was alone among the nation’s largest states in having an increase in employment over the last 12 months. In 2009, we had twice as many new home starts as the next best state. To see for yourself how Texas stacks up to the rest of the country, see here, here, and here.

Why does Texas continue to outperform the nation? Texas works because Texans work, and because we understand it is the free enterprise system that creates prosperity, not government.

Several factors are key to our state’s success and all stem from our hardworking Texas values:

• Low Taxes – Businesses and individuals vote with their feet and across the nation those feet are two-stepping from high tax states towards low tax states, with Texas the nation’s biggest winner.

• Predictable Regulatory System – In sports, no teams would agree to play unless the rules were clear before the game started. Similarly, investors tend to sit on the sidelines if they don’t know what the rules are going to be. To entice this investment on to the job creating field, we must maintain a stable system that gives plenty of notice and doesn’t change the rules in the middle of the game, and this can be done while protecting consumers, our environment and those that risk capital. Need proof? Chief Executive Magazine just ranked Texas the number one state in which to do business for the sixth year in a row!

• Fair Civil Justice System – Eight years ago, Texas was facing a meltdown of its medical system: malpractice insurance rates skyrocketed and doctors were fleeing the state. We passed landmark tort reform that protected those who have been harmed by malpractice, while reducing frivolous lawsuits. As with our regulatory system, we now have stability and predictability, and guess what? Rates were lowered, new companies offered coverage and doctors returned.

• Powerful Production Agriculture – Texas farmers and ranchers are the basis for agriculture contributing over $100 billion per year in economic impact on the Lone Star State. From the Valley to the Panhandle and from the Pineywoods to El Paso, Texas agriculture is a powerhouse of production. Consumers are the real winner and Texas agriculture has something for everyone.

These factors, along with our hard-working and capable workforce, have kept our state strong. The Texas story is a surprise to many Americans, but not to anyone who has lived here long.

We Texans have a history of beating the odds and doing things right. I recently saw a billboard in Austin which sums it up quite nicely. It said, “If you want something to happen, tell a Texan it can’t be done.” People have been telling Texans it can’t be done for a long time, and we continue to surprise them by doing it.

Agriculture for Everyone

As a student beginning my agricultural career as an FFA member, I learned the words of the FFA Creed, which in part states, “I believe in the future of farming, with a faith born not of words but of deeds.” Since then, the word “farming” has been replaced with “agriculture,” yet the message remains the same. Farmers and ranchers across this nation are, through faith and deeds, providing the most affordable, most abundant, and safest food and fiber supply in the world.

Agriculture is the clothes we wear and the food we eat, but it encompasses so much more. It comprises our medicines, makeup, tires, toothpaste, and myriad other consumer products that we often take for granted. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, the American agriculture industry employed more than two million people in production agriculture alone during 2008. Right here in the Lone Star State, agriculture employs one in seven working Texans (14%), and contributes a state economic impact of over $100 billion.

The point is this: agriculture, especially in Texas, is a vibrant and dynamic industry that we all depend on daily. It is an industry that provides jobs in production, marketing, transportation, research, and education. Unfortunately, many people have no idea where their food comes from or how it impacts our economy. Mike Rowe, host of Dirty Jobs on the Discovery Channel, sums up the plight of the American farmer very well.

“Technical advances in modern agriculture now rival those of Silicon Valley, and today’s farms are more efficient than ever, but no one seems to have gotten the memo. No one seems to care.”

Education and hard work are the keys to making sure people start caring about agriculture. Agriculture affects us all, even beyond the aisles of the grocery store, and we all depend on it daily. It has been my honor to serve as your Texas Commissioner of Agriculture over the past few years, and with your help I will continue to fight for farmers, ranchers, and all Texas consumers, ensuring that their stories are told and their families have a promising tomorrow. Agriculture is alive and well in Texas, and I intend to keep it that way!

Welcome to my Blog!

Welcome to my blog, which will now be posted on www.toddstaples.com. Since November 2 is drawing near, I thought it best to let the talented and dedicated staff at the Texas Department of Agriculture take over my blog spot at the agency until after Election Day.

I do, however, want to keep you posted on key events in our state, nation and world and how they impact the Texas economy. Being that this site is hosted by Texans for Todd Staples, I will discuss the clear differences in choice Texans will have in choosing who they want to represent them as Texas Commissioner of Agriculture for the next four years.

It has been a privilege to serve you these past few years and work with you to achieve a dynamic agriculture industry, vibrant Texas economy, limited and efficient government, lower taxes and better services, better home and land owner rights, improved and healthier lifestyles, and private wildlife and land stewardship opportunities. If you agree with me that these need to be our priorities for the next four years, then I humbly ask for your support as we continue to build an even stronger and more prosperous Texas.

Stay tuned and GO TEXAN!