December 8, 2010
www.gfb.org
Vol. 28 No. 49
GEORGIA FARM BUREAU HOLDS 72nd ANNUAL CONVENTION Change was a common theme of speeches given by Gov.-elect Nathan Deal, A.D. Frazier, chairman of the Special Council on Tax Reform & Fairness for Georgians and Georgia Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall during the organization’s 72nd annual convention on Jekyll Island. Deal, who is set to become Georgia’s 82nd governor Jan. 10, gave the keynote address of the convention on Dec. 6, speaking to a crowd of about 1,400 farmers and agribusiness leaders from across the state who met on Jekyll Island Dec. 5-7. Deal, who represented Georgia’s 9th Congressional District in the U.S. Congress before resigning earlier this year to run for governor, pledged to work with the state constitutional officers and members of the Georgia General Assembly for the betterment of the state. Deal, a fiscal conservative, said his transition team is evaluating state government in an effort to eliminate duplication of services and consolidate similar services to save money. Deal said he would also work to eliminate state regulations that hinder new businesses from opening in Georgia once recruited to the state, and that operating the state on a balanced budget will be a priority. “I think voters want us to ask the hard questions in providing goods and services to our families and for businesses in our community,” Deal said. Frazier, who is chairing the 11-member tax council created by the Georgia General Assembly during its 2010 session for the purpose of studying Georgia’s tax revenue structure and making recommendations to make the state’s tax structure more modern, simple, fair and businessfriendly, said the council realizes the importance of agriculture to Georgia’s economy and will not recommend changes to the state’s tax code that would hurt the industry. “One of the things Georgia has done in the past is to exempt inputs to agriculture production. The message I heard all over the state was don’t mess it up, so we’re not,” Frazier said. While delivering his annual address to Georgia Farm Bureau members, GFB President Zippy Duvall acknowledged the reality of change Georgia and its number one industry, agriculture, are set to experience as new state leaders and agency heads take office in the coming year. “Since the beginning of our organization, our mission has been to be the voice of Georgia farmers. Georgia Farm Bureau will continue to work to develop relationships with our state leaders so that the concerns of Georgia's farmers are heard. We must continue to be aggressive in promoting agriculture and addressing issues by contacting legislators and expressing our concerns. The key to our success is our member involvement. Nobody can speak for a farmer better than a farmer. Farm Bureau is the vehicle that gets you there to speak your concerns.”