Legislators look to measures to help farmers

Legislators are working on a bill which would extend some financialassistance to family farmers hit hard by low crop and livestock prices. Theplan would use about 80-million dollars worth of state tax dollars to reduceinterest rates on farm loans by three percent. Representative Ralph Klemme,a republican from LeMars, is working on the bill.The loan help would only be for so-called family farmers who raise underfive-thousand head of hogs or one-thousand head of cattle. Many legislatorsare skeptical the plan will ever become law, but Klemme’s not ready tobelieve the state will turn its back on farmers.Klemme says new evidence highlights the crisis: the state income taxes paidby farmers are down significantly.Klemme is chairman of the House Ag Committee.