A bill introduced in the North Dakota House would makes changes to dollars allocated to the state Beef Checkoff Program. “I was initially asked to introduce the legislation by a lone constituent,” said Representative Sebastian Ertelt during a House Agriculture Committee hearing. “Little did I know there would be so much support for it.” After hearing from both supporters and opposers of the bill, the committee called on North Dakota Beef Commission Executive Director Nancy Jo Bateman to serve as an educational resource. A main concern from supporters of the legislation was difficulties in the state dollar refund process. “We need proof of the market (sold at), date of the sale and the number of head. Some markets do that differently,” explained Bateman. “If a receipt comes in with one person’s name on it, the only person we can make sure and be accountable for is that person on receipt.” Bateman concluded by saying the commission tries to make the refund process as simple as possible. Watch the hearing video.
