By State Sen. Daryl Schmitt (R-Jasper)
It's no secret that in southwest Indiana, many people make their living in the agricultural industry. In fact, when I'm not working in the legislature, my primary job is farming.
There is a lot more to running a farm than just taking care of livestock and planting fields. At the heart of every farm is a business, and businesses need to stay up to date with the latest regulatory information, best practices and possible funding opportunities.
To give farmers an easy-to-use place to access information they need about agriculture, I co-sponsored House Enrolled Act 1149, which was signed into law by Gov. Braun this Tuesday.
House Enrolled Act 1149 will require the Indiana State Department of Agriculture to create and maintain an online portal as a one-stop shop for all the information farmers need to access about agricultural federal and state funding opportunities and assist farmers in collaborating with groups like Purdue University's cooperative extension service.
By 2029, House Enrolled Act 1149 will also require the Indiana State Department of Agriculture to take inventory of all lost farmland every five years, determine the cause of the loss of farmland and allow them to make recommendations.
This portal will not only make finding information on agriculture a lot easier, but will also help our state remain one of the top agricultural producers in the nation.
As always, constituents can reach out to me with any questions or concerns by email at s48@iga.in.gov or by phone at 1-800-382-9467.
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State Sen. Daryl Schmitt (R-Jasper) represents Senate District 48,
which includes Crawford, Dubois, Gibson, Perry, Pike and Spencer counties.
Click here to download a high-resolution photo.
