WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) – A list of pro-agriculture priorities made by farmers in the North Country and all across the state will soon be before state lawmakers.
Farmers from 50 New York counties shared ideas, debated, and now the New York Farm Bureau has a list of 10 agriculture priorities, curated by those farmers, that they’re taking to Albany, where they hope lawmakers will do something about them in 2026.
“I’m hopeful, hopeful for how it goes,” said Renée St. Jacques, New York Farm Bureau.
New York Farm Bureau officials say one of the biggest issues is the expiration of refundability for investment tax credits. It’s a system farmers often use to afford new infrastructure. It expires in 2027.
“A lot of farmers are utilizing that tax credit, especially when it’s refundable because then it’s almost like an overpayment, treated like that when you do your taxes,” said St. Jacques.
Some priorities officials say are uphill battles. One is getting New York to create a clean fuel standard. That’s a policy that would set a limit on carbon output from fuels. In theory, that would create a market in New York for biomethane, which can be easily produced on farms and can replace diesel.
Another priority they’re expecting issues with is getting level funding for agricultural programs. Agricultural programs make up less than 1% of the state budget, and this year, the farm bureau was told money is even tighter.
“That’s what we’ve been told by the governor’s staff, by the legislators, that because of the relationship between the federal and the state government, that it seems like it’s a little bit better now. We were hearing worse in the fall. We were hearing ‘don’t ask for more money. You’re not going to get it’ or something like that,” said St. Jacques.
The legislative session begins in January. The bureau’s list of priorities will be addressed sometime before the session ends this coming spring.
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