HANSEN SUPPORTS INDEPENDENT AG DEPARTMENT

State Rep. Goeff Hansen and a bipartisan group of lawmakers today sent a letter to Gov. Granholm asking her to stop plans to merge the Department of Agriculture with the departments of Natural Resources and Environmental Quality.

The governor's administration has said they may request an executive order to merge the three departments, despite agriculture being Michigan's second largest industry, with an estimated economic impact of $71.3 billion annually.

"Our Department of Agriculture is a success story for Michigan, showing growth while other industries have been struggling," said Hansen, R-Hart. "Eliminating a state department that is directly helping to create jobs and strengthen our economy would be foolish."

The letter was signed by 64 House Republicans and Democrats.

Michigan's agriculture industry experienced 12 percent growth in 2007, according to Michigan State University. A West Michigan Strategic Alliance/Green Infrastructure Initiative and MSU Land Policy Institute study this fall showed 28 percent of the state's agriculture economy is based in west Michigan, employing more than 26,000 workers and contributing more than $103 million to state and local governments.

"It's obvious how important agriculture is for our state, and our region," Hansen said. "We can't afford to risk anything that could hurt our farming industry, especially when everyone is successfully working together to build even larger opportunities for our agriculture efforts."
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