ST. PAUL – Rep. Paul Anderson, R-Starbuck, will remain chairman of the House Agriculture Policy Committee for the 2017-18 biennium.
Anderson, elected to a fifth House term earlier this month, has served on agriculture committees throughout his time in office. It was announced by House Republicans Tuesday Anderson will chair the Agriculture Policy Committee for a second consecutive term.
“It is an honor to continue serving as chairman of this committee,” Anderson said. “As a lifetime farmer, this suits me very well. We made progress on a number of issues during the last two years, but I look forward to taking on additional challenges we face in helping farmers in our state.”
Throughout his legislative career, Anderson has been an advocate for people in the agriculture industry and Greater Minnesota in general. During the last two years as ag. policy chairman, this includes everything from a tractor rollover kit reimbursement program Anderson led, to passage to protecting landowners multiple ways.
Anderson said he continues to hear concerns over recently instituted buffer zones and he will look to gain further clarity over public water vs. private ditches during the upcoming biennium. Another top priority Anderson said will be to examine issues related to farm chemicals Gov. Mark Dayton brought to the forefront last summer.
“The governor’s surprise announcement regarding farm chemicals caught a lot of people by surprise,” Anderson said. “We need to make sure farmers are able to use all the tools available to them in safely producing crops.”
The Legislature is scheduled to convene at the Capitol in St. Paul Jan. 3, with Republicans gaining a Senate majority in addition to retaining control of the House.
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