SUMMARY OF AFBF 

 RESOLUTIONS 



(Continued from page 24) 



Farm Bureau Federation urged the develop- 

 ment of a cooperative rural credit system, 

 in the belief that a cooperative system of 

 such credit is essential to the well-being of 

 American agriculture. 



Since the establishment of the Farm 

 Credit Administration in 1933, which pro- 

 vided the foundafton for a farmer-owned 

 and farmer-controlled farm credit system, we 

 have repeatedly reaffirmed our recommenda- 

 tions that the necessary steps be taken to 

 make the farm credit system fully coopera- 

 tive so that it will be farmer-owned and 

 controlled, and that there be encouraged 

 and preserved the initiative and responsibil- 

 ity of the local associations which are the 

 basic units of a sound cooperative system. 



In order further to improve the credit 

 services to farmers, the American Farm 

 Bureau Federation recommends that the var- 

 ious agencies of the Farm Credit Adminis- 

 tration and the direct government lending 

 agencies be coordinated and that as the 

 first step in such coordination these farm 

 credit agencies should be placed under the 

 direction of a single independent national 

 policy-making bi-partisan board. We also 

 reafiFirm our support of the general prin- 

 ciples of the recent Flannagan farm credit 

 bill. 



Today through the continued efforts of 

 the farmer-borrowers, all but one Federal 

 land bank have repaid all Government 

 capital. We urge that the cooperative 

 features of the farm credit system be further 

 expanded, and specifically recommend that a 

 study be made on the desirability and feasi- 

 bility of achieving complete farmer-owner- 

 ship and control of the Federal land banks, 

 production credit, corporations, intermediate 

 credit banks and banks for cooperatives. 



We affirm our recognition of the need 

 for improvement of farm housing and our 

 belief that such need can be met most eflfec- 

 tively by utilizing existing credit agencies 

 under the Farm Credit Administration, with- 

 out embarking upon any expansion of direct 

 government loans. 



Farm Labor 



The recruitment and placement of farm 

 workers is chiefly the problem of the farmer- 

 employer. During the war extensive gov- 

 ernmental financial assistance was needed 

 in order to assure an adequate supply of 

 farm labor for the production and harvesting 

 of the tremendous food and fibre require- 

 ments of the world. Steps now should be 

 taken to minimize governmental control of 

 farm labor and limit the operations of such 

 program to the recruitment and placement 

 of workers and their families and the 

 gathering and dissemination of statistical 

 information on labor supplies. 



At the state level we recommend that the 

 present program be continued, with appro- 

 priate legislation authorizing the state Ex- 

 tension Service if it does not desire to con- 

 tinue to conduct the operations of the 

 program to designate some other state 

 agency created or approved by the respective/ 

 state legislatures to Supervise the recruitment 

 and placement of farm workers. 



Land and Water Use - 



The American Farm Bureau Federation 

 reaffirms its support for conservation and 

 the wise use of our lands, water, and forests. 

 This is a vast problem involving many di- . 

 verse and controversial subjects, such as 



34 



irrigation, reclamation, flood control, valley 

 authorities, and the use of forests and other 

 public lands. The American Farm Bureau 

 Federation recognizes the importance of 

 irrigation and water development to the 

 agricultural economy of the arid West. We 

 recognize that the welfare of Western agri- 

 culture demands the development of a con- 

 structive far-seeing water policy. 



Now projects undertaken by the Federal 

 Government on flood control, irrigation, 

 reclamation, and valley authority projects 

 should be advanced only after due con- 

 sideration of necessity and of the effect in 

 the monetary and fiscal field, and with real 

 consideration of the viewpoint of those in 

 the area affected. 



Rural Electrification 



One-half of the farmers of this nation 

 now have electricity. The remaining rural 

 families must receive this service as fast 

 as possible. Electrified rural homes are 

 brighter and healthier, and over-emphasis 

 cannot be given to the part that electricity 

 is playing in making farmers more efficient 

 in the production and marketing of their 

 products. We therefore urge and support 

 the Rural Electrification Administration's 

 program, designed to extend coverage on a 

 self-liquidating basis, to farm people 

 through local cooperatives, and so designed 

 as to be owned, operated, and controlled 

 by the people they serve upon truly coopera- 

 tive principles. We also urge privately- 

 owned utility companies to prosecute vigor- 

 ously their programs of electrification in 

 rural communities giving full coverage to 

 all farmers in the areas which they serve. 



We look with concern upon the extension 

 of REA activities to merchandising of 

 electrical equipment and related items. 



We oppose enactment of legislation de- 

 signed to restrict authority to make loans 

 for generating power, but insist that no such 

 loans be made by the Rural Electrification 

 Administration for building generating 

 plants except in cases where a positive sav- 

 ing can be made to consumers or where 

 sufficient ehergy is not otherwise available 

 to serve rural consumers. 



Transportation 



It is well recognized that the maintenance 

 of an efficient and economical transportation 

 system is of vital importance to agriculture. 

 The American Farm Bureau Federation has, 

 year after year, reiterated its position on 

 the general problem of transportation as it 

 affects agriculture. 



We reaffirm our established policies in 

 regard to the construction and maintenance 

 of year-round farm-to-raarket roads and urge 



A. L. Dewbat, Knox county, look* at lAA 

 momborship at AFBF convention. 



the board of directors of the Amercian Farm 

 Bureau Federation to seek a clarification of 

 policy as the adoption of standards, specifica- 

 tions and other related matters by the public 

 roads administration and state highway de- 

 partments so that the determinations of 

 these matters will be left to the states. 



We recognize that American railroads 

 constitute an important part of our trans- 

 portation system and that railroads must 

 operate under such reasonable regulations 

 as will assure the public fair and reasonable 

 rates and adequate service. We urge that 

 greater emphasis be placed on the improve- 

 ment of rail equipment in order to further 

 reduce the cost of marketing agricultural 

 commodities. 



Research • 



The American Farm Bureau Federation 

 played a leading role in the passage of the 

 Bankhead-Flannagan-Hope research bill, 

 which provides for a greatly expanded re- 

 search program for agriculture. We be- 

 lieve that this program is essential to the 

 maintenance of the well-being of agricul- 

 ture in our competitive economy. Special 

 emphasis should be given to new research 

 work in the utilization of agricultural prod- 

 ucts and the development of expanded mar- 

 kets. Added emphasis is also needed on 

 coordinated studies of means to reduce the 

 cost of marketing agricultural products. 



We believe that the greatest possible 

 proportion of these new funds should be 

 spent in the respective states, rather than 

 being centralized in Washington. We in- 

 sist that these new funds be administered in 

 such a manner as to avoid duplication of 

 work, overlapping of functions and conflict 

 of agencies. j' ' 



Coounodity Programs 



No development in Farm Bureau in re- 

 cent years has so encouraged the producers 

 of speciality crops as has the new Com- 

 modity Program. These crops in the ag- 

 gregate make up a large part of the national 

 farm income. The problems of these crops 

 are many, difficult, and varied. 



Only men who are specialists in these 

 fields can fully understand and adequately 

 cope with these problems. The new com- 

 modity program gives the board of directors 

 more information on, and a better under- 

 standing of, these problems as well as giv. 

 ing the growers of these crops a definite 

 place in the Farm Bureau program. When 

 coupled with varied activities on such gen- 

 eral matters as taxation, credit, international 

 relationships, and general price levels, the 

 Commodity Program gives to the American 

 Farm Bureau Federation a well-rounded 

 ability to serve the interests of American 

 agriculture. 



Membership 



The American Farm Bureau Federation 

 has completed the most successful member- 

 ship year in its history. The organization 

 with 1,128,259 farm families representing 

 approximately five million farm people who 

 have voluntarily joined, is a tribute to the 

 desire of farm people to make a contribu- 

 tion to the world in which they live. This 

 membership record was attained by hard 

 work on the part of thousands of individual 

 farmers throughout the United States who 

 voluntarily contacted friends and neighbors 

 in membership drives. We express our 

 grateful appreciation for their untiring ef- 

 forts in membership solicitation. We also 

 recognize the contribution of the various 

 county and state leaders who have worked 

 diligently on the membership programs. 



L A. A. RECORD 



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