Commission Proposes Meat Industry User Fees

A bipartisan government commission has proposed that the meat industry be charged user fees as a way to bring in more money to subtract from the government's deficits, according to the North American Meat Processors Association's NewsLine newsletter.

User fees are government proposed fees for the use of services in some industries. Past government administrations have proposed user fees for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) as well, but the idea has been met with much opposition among the meat industry and consumer groups.

Last February, President Obama established the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform as a way to propose recommendations to balance the budget. Last week, the commission released a proposal draft of recommendations with user fees as a part of the proposal. The meat industry was disappointed to see these recommendations. The administration also proposed user fees in its USDA budget proposal in February.

The American Sheep Industry Association (ASI) has joined with livestock and meat industry organizations for many years to successfully oppose this user fee provision. ASI ultimately believes would be another cost to sheep farmers and ranchers.

The draft recommendations are available at www.fiscalcommission.gov.

Reprinted in part from Meatingplace.com