LANSING — Michigan House Republicans are proposing more than $50 million in cuts to Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, including investments in agricultural climate resilience, animal disease prevention, plant pest management and more.
The state House’s funding proposal would cut MDARD’s budget by more than a third, a change that advocates say could upend the agriculture industry.
MDARD director Tim Boring says in a statement that the House proposal would threaten the functions of the more than $120 billion Michigan agriculture industry.
“This includes significant cuts to food safety work, emergency response and preparedness, and customer service operations,” he said. “At a time when our federal partners are pushing for state governments to pick up the load, the House budget plan defunds our basic functions that help Michigan farmers continue operations, keep Michiganders safe from illness, and more.”
Rep. Ken Borton, (R) District 105, Gaylord, who led the House’s MDARD proposal, says that the specifics of the budget are still being negotiated.
“We’re going to find out where those priorities fall,” he said. “Obviously, food safety is going to be at the top of the list, and that’s something that’s not going to be — not going to fall by the wayside, by any means.”
Still, the proposal has received pushback from the department and some Northern Michigan farmers.
Boring also says that the proposed cuts would hinder the department’s ability to process paperwork, while reductions in grant programs could hurt farmers around the state.
“Assisting Michigan farmers and agribusinesses isn’t wasteful — it’s how local, healthy food can reach our dinner plates,” he said. “It’s an economic lifeline for Michigan’s small, rural businesses.”
Phil Hallstedt, co-founder of HH Cherries in Leelanau County, says that the cuts would hurt Michigan farmers who rely on state research and support.
“That also just adds another level of isolation to the farming community — that economic isolation, community isolation, market isolation,” he said.
Sen. John Cherry, (D) District 27, Flint, who led the Senate’s MDARD funding proposal, says he’s concerned that cuts to safety inspections would jeopardize the ability for Michigan farmers to sell internationally.
“If you can’t get the export license because we’re not meeting the requirements for other countries to receive it, then you’re eliminating markets in their entirety,” he said. “When we have those drastic cuts to safety and basic regulations, it undermines our ability to maintain those products.”