SB 1075 - This act creates the Breimyer Center for Sustainable Food and Farming Systems. The Breimyer Center will assist family farms by promoting sustainable family farm agriculture, community foods systems and food security in Missouri. The center will advocate the interests of family farmers and sustainable family farm agriculture and support research in those areas and is authorized to provide grants. The center will provide legal information for groups wishing to challenge existing or proposed statutes, rules or regulations and specific methods for challenge are specified.

The salary for executive director of the Breimyer Center will be funded through appropriations. At least one of the staff will be an attorney licensed to practice law in the state of Missouri. The Breimyer Center will be housed primarily at the University of Missouri-Columbia. The Breimyer Center for Sustainable Food and Farming Systems Governing Board is created and will consist of six persons actively engaged in sustainable family farm agriculture and three persons actively engaged in the development of community food systems. Members will be appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Governing Board will elect officers and inform the public about sustainable food and farming innovations, methods, procedures and information, regulatory and statutory changes and other pertinent information. The Governing Board will hire the executive director for the Center.

The Breimyer Center for Sustainable Food and Farming Systems Non-voting Advisory Council is also created. This council will work with and provide assistance to the Governing Board. The Non-voting Advisory Council will consist of the Governor or his or her designee and Directors or designees from the Department of Conservation, Department of Economic Development, and Department of Natural Resources, as well as the Dean of the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources and the Department of Rural Sociology from the University of Missouri-Columbia and the president of the governing board.

Pesticide registration fees are raised to $150 per product per year. One-third of those moneys will remain in the Pesticide Project Fund and two-thirds will be transferred to the Breimyer Center for Sustainable Food and Farming Systems Fund which is created. The Director of the Department of Agriculture is given authority to deny, cancel or revoke a pesticide registration in certain circumstances.
CINDY KADLEC