Caledonia Argus

Commissioners say ag tech lacks support

Posted: 4/6/04

By Shannon McKinney
Argus News Reporter

Some local farmers would like to know why Houston County chose not to share the ag tech position with two neighboring counties when it had the opportunity to do so.

On December 16, 2003, Houston County commissioners opted out of a deal proposed by the extension to share a part time ag position at 1/3 time with Fillmore and Winona Counties.

At the meeting, Commissioner Dave Corcoran said he heard that one of the counties was not intending to go in on the 1/3 time proposal. He believed that all counties had to buy in at 1/3 time in order for all counties to obtain an ag tech.

Houston County Extension agent Neil Broadwater agreed, ìIt was my understanding at that time that if Houston County did not support this position then all three counties would not have this position.î

However, it wasnít until after Houston County declined sharing the position that Minnesota extension found a way to keep an ag tech in the area.

LuAnn Hiniker of Minnesota Extension told The Argus that the counties knew that the shared 1/3 time position was not an ìall or nothingî scenario. She explained, ìA lot of counties statewide have gone with a 1/4-time ag tech. One great thing about this model and structure weíre in, is that counties have the ability to buy into what they need.î

She further explained that it was her job to keep Jerry Tessmer in a full-time capacity so that area counties could have the option of using some of the ag techís services.

Hinikerís viewpoint was news to Broadwater who said, ìI did not know there would be an alternative to the all or nothing 1/3 time position. I was surprised that the decision was made to shift some money for other programs to keep Jerry (Tessmer) on these other programs.î

He added, ìI would assume what happened is that LuAnn said, ëIf thatís their decision, we really need to keep an ag person down there in those counties.í I assume the decision was made after the decision was made in Houston County.î

Houston County commissioner Dave Corcoran said he, too, believed it was an all or nothing situation. Had it been proposed differently, the county might have supported the ag tech. ìWe might have (supported it). We would have brought it up for discussion,î he explained.

But commissioners had other reasons for not supporting an ag tech.

They felt the position, which would have cost $14,000, was too much money. Also, the cost of the ag tech was predicted to increase by at least $10,000 next year. Commissioners did not want to bring in a full time ag tech if they could not support it next year.

They also felt that the extensionís proposal, which had changed due to cuts at the state level, was not well thought out.

Commissioner Kevin Kelleher felt the farmers did not really need an ag educator because he had not heard any complaints from farmers since the position had been downsized from a full time to half time position in the last year.

Since then, Fred Arnold, a farmer from Spring Grove has appeared at the Houston County board twice advocating for the farmers in Houston County, declaring the need for an ag technician.

At one meeting, he was also been joined by several other farmers.

Broadwater feels the county should make its decision on the ag tech based on what they want for their county and not on what other counties are doing. ìIf they believed in the position, they should have funded it. Show your good faith and say, ëYes, we want this position.íî

Corcoran recently told The Argus that he believes there are only a few people in the county who think an ag tech is important. ìWe did our survey and 4-H was number 1. Even in the rural area, thereís a conflict.î

He added that specialization of ag information makes it harder for just one person to serve everyone. ìYou can have an ag person, but if heís not knowledgeable in every area, you still have to call the regional center. Years ago, everyone knew a little bit about everything. Then, they started specializing,î he explained.

Other counties support ag tech

On December 2, Winona County commissioners voted 3-1 to hire an ag technician at 1/3 time to be shared with Fillmore and Houston Counties, contingent on the other two counties hiring an ag tech.

Prior to December, chairman of the Fillmore County Board, Randy Dahl, said that they had intended to support an ag technician at 1/4 time, but would not be able to pay for it at 1/3 time.

So, when Houston County did not support a 1/3 time ag position, Fillmore County assumed it would not be able to receive a 1/4 time ag technician.

However, on December 23, LuAnn Hiniker of Minnesota Extensionís appeared before Fillmore County commissioners proposing to use grant money to fund the part of the position that Houston County could not. The ag technician, Jerry Tessmer, currently works 1/3 time in Winona County and 1/4 time in Fillmore County. He also spends 17 percent of his time working on a karst campaign funds grant for the south branch of the Root River Watershed in Fillmore County and the Whitewater Watershed in Winona County.

In January, he began working 1/4-time on an extension project creating a farm information line. It is currently in the test phase and may be ready to go state-wide in April.

Winona County Commissioner Marcia Ward made the motion that day to approve the ag technician because she grew up on a farm and felt the county needed to support the agricultural portion of the county. ìAg dollars in a sense are still a big part of this community,î she explained.

Their extension budget, like many counties has seen reductions.

Ward said she was surprised when Houston County did not support an ag technician. ìHouston County is more of an agriculture county than we are. Weíre half city and half county.î

Dahl of Fillmore County, however, isnít surprised with Houston Countyís decision to not hire an ag technician. ìI could understand with the frustration everybody was dealing with. I think the commissioners did everything they could,î he said.

Fillmore Countyís decision to fund the position at 1/4 time was designed to ìkeep their foot in the doorî and keep ag staff in the county.

ìIím very disappointed with how they (UM-extension services) handled their re-organization,î said Dahl.

He added that he did not know if they would have been able to keep Tessmer without the karst grant that Minnesota Extension found to help keep Tessmer in the area to serve those counties.

Hiniker told The Argus that it was her job to find ways to keep Tessmer in a full time capacity so that area counties would have the option of using some of his services.

Minnesota Extension has seen major cuts in the last two years which has affected the kind of programming they can offer.

In the last legislative session, their budget saw an 11 percent cut, which is a seven million reduction.

In 2003, Houston County spent $142,000 on extension services and will spend $108,000 this year. Corcoran noted that they are receiving fewer services but are paying more. About three years ago the county spent approximately $100,000 on extension services and received three full time educators.

Ag tech sees need in counties

Tessmer has worked out of Fillmore County in an agriculture capacity for 16 years. His position has seen a lot of change in the last two years. During the 18 months when the extension was facing budget cuts, he offered his services as a county extension director to Mower and Fillmore County.

Not until the end of 2003 did he find out what he would be doing.

So far he has been very busy serving as ag tech in Winona and Fillmore counties. If he had more time, he could certainly provide more education, he said.

The short term effects of Houston County not having an ag tech may be less detrimental than the long term effects, according to Tessmer. ìIn the long term it will show up in things that canít get done. There is the lack of the availability of a local person who knows the area.î

For example, when the regional educator wanted to hold a meeting in Fillmore County, Tessmer coordinated the event by finding a location, lining up the lunches and the technical equipment. ìThey could come into Houston County and hold a meeting, but itís easier if you have someone to coordinate it,î said Tessmer.

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