Farmers May Be in Short Supply Come the Election: Position

Summary

---

State Agriculture Commissioner Gus R. Douglass will leave a long legacy when he retires from the Department of Agriculture next year. Hell also leave behind some confusion. Its not his fault. West Virginia law says the agriculture commissioner shall be a practical farmer, learned in the science of agriculture, and shall have made agriculture his chief business for a period of ten years immediately preceding his election. Douglass is a lifelong farmer and still lives on the 540-acre farm where he grew up. But as candidates start lining up to take his office, state officials may soon be asking complicated questions. What is a practical farmer, for instance? And how much of a candidates income needs to come from farming for it to qualify as their chief business? The answer is as clear as mud. Secretary of State Natalie Tennants spokesman Jake Glance said Tennants office would not determine whether candidates for agriculture commissioner meet the legal guidelines. Just like in any other race, if anyone believes a candidate is not qualified, they can file an action in court and seek a ruling that the candidate is not qualified and keep that candidate off the ballot, he wrote in an email. Buddy Davidson, spokesman for the state agriculture department, says he has no idea who might qualify as a practical farmer. That has no specific meaning. Theyre all pretty practical. Theyre a practical lot altogether, he said. Does it really mean anything? Davidson said there are about 23,000 farms in the Mountain State but the majority of the states farmers work part time. He said agriculture operations are legally considered farms if they produce $1,000 of agricultural goods per year heirloom tomatoes, bamboo stalks, pygmy goats, alpaca fleece, whatever even if they dont sell anything. Theres not a lot of people who make their only living from farming in West Virginia, he said. Davidson said hes done some research on the requirements for the Department of Agricultures centennial, which is taking place this year. The commissioner requirements entered state law in 1911, the same year the agriculture department was created, but Davidson says he couldnt find any legislative history on the requirements. Its never been tested. No ones had to question that because Gus Douglass has a 540- acre farm and 100 head of cattle, he said. Douglass came to the agriculture department with background knowledge in spades. Growing up, he made his spending money selling potatoes and other crops. He joined the Future Farmers of America in high school, eventually becoming the organizations national president and the first president of its alumni association. He joined the state agriculture department in 1957 and became agriculture commissioner in 1964. Douglass has remained in office ever since, except for four years between 1988 and 1992 after he ran unsuccessfully for governor. Of course, Gaston Caperton outspent an old farm boy, Douglass said, referring to candidate who was elected governor in 1988. Throughout his political career, Douglass has kept his Mason County farm. His son now operates the business. The family raises livestock but gets most of its income from hay production, cranking out 12,000 to 15,000 bales every year.

Background as a farmer called an archaic statute Sen. Walt Helmick, D-Pocahontas, says he has wanted to be agriculture commissioner for years. He plans to make his first bid for the office next year. Helmick says he meets the state law requirements to serve as agriculture commissioner even though hes not a farmer in a traditional sense. Helmick has multiple business interests. He became a certified auctioneer in 1993 after attending an auctioneer school in North Carolina. Hes a certified welder and even taught welding at Pocahontas County High School for five years. He and his wife, Rita, own and rent four cottages in Minnehaha Springs (www.allegheny lodgewv.com). The couple also runs a water-bottling plant that draws its product from a spring on the same property. They bottle and sell custom-labeled spring water to hospitals, schools, insurance companies, tourism companies, athletic teams and churches, among others. Helmick said his bottling operation technically qualifies him for agriculture commissioner. Its a food product, he said However, he thinks the laws requirements need to be revised. I think its archaic. Its difficult for anybody to meet those requirements, he said. Helmick said lawmakers of yore probably had a good reason to put those requirements in state law but wonders, Does it fit today? Thats going to have to be answered. The position requires more than the ability to raise crops or raise cattle, he said. The agriculture commissioner manages about $60 million annually in federal and state monies combined. Its changed a great deal. Youre going to have to have somebody thats a manager, that can manage a significant Board of Public Works office. He said the issue should to be resolved soon since candidates can start filing candidacy papers in January.

See the full content of this document

Extract

---

Farmers May Be in Short Supply Come the Election: Position

You dont have to be a banker to run for treasurer Joe Delong, deputy secretary of the state Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety, also would like to see the requirement removed. You dont have to be a banker to run for treasurer. You dont have to...

See the full content of this document

---