Ag Community Asks Brown To Veto Overtime Legislation

The Oregon Ag Community is calling on Governor Kate Brown to veto legislation that will do away with the state’s overtime exemption for the farming community. The coalition, which includes a dozen Ag organizations from across the state, is asking the Governor to reject the legislation which they call bad policy for both farm families and farm employees. Their letter to Brown also says House Bill 4002 was also the result of a very bad process. The letter says labor advocates refused to negotiate in any substantive way prior to the 2022 legislative session, or during it.

Here is that letter recently sent by Oregon's farming community:

Dear Governor Brown:

We, the undersigned agricultural coalition members, formally ask you to veto House Bill 4002B. The bill is bad policy for both farm families and farm employees and it is the result of a very bad process. We ask you to veto this bill before it does irreparable harm to all who depend on the ag community.

Ag producers engaged in every workgroup and process in good faith throughout the last year. They brought solutions to the table that addressed every policy objective labor advocates identified. One example is the -10 amendments, which would have taken away tax credits from farmers and used the funds instead for direct payments to farm employees. There are several similar examples of where ag producers attempted to find consensus. Please note that no signer on this letter opposed reaching a workable bill to grant overtime pay to ag employees in this process.

The legislature is aware and acknowledges that the nominal tax credits in the bill are inadequately funded and ineffective in their design. These temporary credits will be delayed and incomplete, and they are subject to being taken away any time future legislatures meet. Additionally, they are lowest when overtime costs are highest. Ag families have repeatedly testified and steadfastly maintained that these credits are not workable.

Labor advocates refused to negotiate in any substantive way this session or the lead-up to it and they actively blew up negotiations last fall by filing a lawsuit and walking away. This is not the path to a solution that maximizes benefits to some while minimizing harm to others. It is not The Oregon Way.

Ideally, a veto would cause the legislature to go back and get this important issue right. However, we know if you veto the bill, the BOLI commissioner has indicated she will initiate rulemaking on this subject. We would rather risk a bad outcome in an evidence- and law-based process at BOLI than watch this bad bill deal the fatal blow to our community.

The threats posed by this bill are well documented in hours of farmer testimony from committee hearings and the floor speeches of rural legislators. Solutions that meet the stated needs of labor advocates are readily at hand. This does not have to be a zero-sum activity.

Legislators heard that their bill accelerates corporatization of agriculture in Oregon, pushes families off the farm, and incentivizes increased out-of-state ownership out of farm and ranch ground while reducing earning potential for farm employees and eliminating jobs. They ignored these certain outcomes. We ask you to not turn your back on farm and ranch families at this pivotal moment.

If the goal is benefitting farm employees while not ignoring the existential needs of the farm and ranch families who employ them, the only option is to veto this bill.

Respectfully signed:

Oregon Farm Bureau

Oregon Association of Nurseries

Oregonians for Food and Shelter

Oregon Seed Council

Oregon Cattlemen’s Association

National Federation of Independent Business

Columbia Gorge Fruit Growers

Associated Oregon Hazelnut Industries

Oregon Wheat Growers League

Farwest Agriculture Association

Oregon Dairy Farmers Association