The following was submitted for discussion on another bee discussion list. Thought it was pertinent enough to discuss and I will make the first comments here on this list.
"proposal to set up a California Apiary Research Commission with the
power to tax.... ....many beekeepers say they will vote against forming the commission...."
When government sticks its sticky fingers in with taxes, not much good seems to come from the effort. Money is siphoned off to other diversions which don't pertain to the original directive and then selective awards don't always get to those who demonstrate viable programs of investigation because of personalities. Personally, I have no pot to stir with this issue since I keep all of my colonies in the county in which I reside and at this point have not reached the 50 colony taxation point.
Mike in LA
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=13253391
A California proposal to tax beekeepers to pay for research on bees'
health has stirred up a swarm, even though all agree more study is
needed amid a widespread die-off.
The proposal to set up a California Apiary Research Commission with the
power to tax comes as bees nationwide are perishing in great numbers
from colony collapse disorder and other health problems. California is
the nation's main producer of fruits and vegetables, and bees are
essential pollinators of about a third of the United States' food
supply.
But many beekeepers say they will vote against forming the commission in
a summer referendum because they don't want to be forced to pay fees
when their industry continues to suffer big losses. The proposal would
allow the commission to tax beekeepers doing business in California with
more than 50 colonies at a rate of up to $1 per hive.
"It's a tough economy and there are a lot of beekeepers who are in
trouble because they're losing their bees," said David Mendes, president
of the American Beekeeping Federation. "This isn't the best time in the
world to ask people to give more money."
Yet nearly everyone involved in agriculture agrees more research on bees is needed.
Colony collapse disorder, in which all the adult honey bees in a colony
suddenly disappear, continues to decimate hives in the U.S. and
overseas. Since it was recognized in 2006, the disease has destroyed
colonies at a rate of about 30 percent per year, according to the U.S.
Department of Agriculture. Before that, losses were about 15 percent per
year from a variety of pests and diseases.
Researchers haven't been able to determine what causes colony collapse
or find a way to prevent it. The work so far points to a combination of
factors including pesticide contamination, a lack of blooms - and hence
nutrition - and mites, viruses and parasites, said Marla Spivak, a
University of Minnesota entomologist. Researchers like Spivak are trying
to breed bees with natural defenses against diseases and parasites,
while beekeepers are providing supplementary protein to keep bees from
getting ill.
Still, colony collapse disorder persists, and its presence is
particularly alarming in California, which attracts beekeepers from all
over the nation every spring for almond pollination. The almond crop has
increased steadily over the past 15 years, and California's beekeepers
can supply only about a third of the estimated 1.5 million colonies now
needed.
The thousands of out-of-state hives brought in temporarily create an
enormous potential for spreading disease rapidly around the nation.
But money for bee health research has been tight, said Frank Pendell,
president of the California State Beekeepers Association. Despite
promises, Congress has appropriated little money for it. A few other
private groups are investing in it, and Pendell's group collected about
$50,000 last year through auctions and donations, most of it coming from
about 20 percent of the state's beekeepers.
At the association's request, California lawmakers authorized the
creation of a research commission last year, subject to a vote by the
beekeepers.
Supporters say the commission and its tax would provide a dependable
source of money for research and make the industry less dependent on
government funds. It could raise about $500,000 initially if the
assessment was set at 50 cents per hive, Pendell said. The research
would benefit beekeepers nationwide.
"We're trying to make this as fair as possible to everyone, and spread the burden around the industry," Pendell said.
But many beekeepers bristle at the idea. Some can't afford a new tax,
and others prefer to decide themselves which research to support instead
of letting a commission choose, Camarillo beekeeper Larry Pender said.
"Our industry is on edge," said Pender, who lost 60 percent of his
colonies, or about 1,000 hives, in December. "We do need the research,
but it's hard to put the money out when it's not in your pocket."
He also thought it would be difficult to track down beekeepers subject
to the tax. Although they are supposed to register with their county or
agricultural inspection stations at the state border, that doesn't
always happen, he said.
The American Beekeeping Foundation did not endorse the proposal at its
national conference in January, Mendes said. Some members were concerned
the money would be swallowed up by the state of California, while
others worried other states would respond by imposing similar taxes.
Beekeepers already feel California is not friendly to the industry,
Mendes said, because it instituted a 7 percent franchise tax last year,
which out-of-state beekeepers must pay on their pollination income.
But Pendell said this commission would be different: It would be made up
of beekeepers, who would control its expenses, and its board would set
the assessment rate each year.
Any beekeeper with more than 50 colonies who does business in California
can register until the end of May to vote in the referendum.
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