Call to Order and Roll Call
The meeting of the Tobacco Settlement Agreement Fund Oversight Committee was held on Wednesday, November 5, 2014, at 10:00 AM, in Room 129 of the Capitol Annex. Representative Wilson Stone, Chair, called the meeting to order, and the secretary called the roll.
Present were:
Members: Senator Paul Hornback, Co-Chair; Representative Wilson Stone, Co-Chair; Senators Carroll Gibson, Jimmy Higdon, Dennis Parrett, and Whitney Westerfield; Representatives Mike Denham, Tom McKee, Terry Mills, and Ryan Quarles.
Guests: Mr. Joel Neaveill, Mr. Bill McCloskey, Mr. Brian Murphy, Ms. Angela Blank, and Ms. Beth Herbert, Governor’s Office of Agricultural Policy; Mr. Van Ingram, Ms. Heather Wainscott, and Ms. Amy Andrews, Kentucky Agency for Substance Abuse Policy.
LRC Staff: Lowell Atchley, Kelly Ludwig, and Kelly Blevins.
The October 1, 2014, minutes were approved, without objection by voice vote, upon a motion by Senator Higdon and second by Co-Chair Hornback.
Governor's Office of Agricultural Policy
Mr. Joel Neaveill, Chief of Staff, Governor's Office of Agricultural Policy (GOAP), summarized the Agricultural Development Board's (ADB) funding decisions made during the board's October meeting.
Mr. Neaveill summarized the funding approvals by the board at the previous month's meeting under the County Agricultural Improvement, Deceased Farm Animal Removal, and Shared-use Equipment programs.
Mr. McCloskey reviewed the board's funding approvals for three county projects: Family Fields iMarket LLC, $23,149 in county funds to expand and renovate an existing retail outlet in Springfield; Washington County Board of Education, $35,000 in county funds to fund partially the construction of a high school greenhouse; and Taylor County Cattlemen's Association, $7,500 in county funds for a youth beef and dairy cattle program.
GOAP officials responded to questions and comments from Senators Hornback, Parrett, and Higdon, and Representative Mills, on the Family Fields iMarket project. The Family Fields iMarket opened its facility and began buying farmers' products after a local open-air farmers' market closed in 2013. The Family Fields Market will buy local farmers' products wholesale and sell those products at a retail establishment and cafe. The market also will be opening a certified kitchen, which producers can rent to use.
Mr. Neaveill discussed the ADB and Agricultural Finance Corporation dual meetings at Owensboro in October. The board discussed proceeding with a study, similar to one done in 2008, that would assess the economic impact of tobacco settlement fund grants made in the years 2007-2014. The board, in its November 21 meeting, will receive funding requests from the larger agriculture promotion groups that have received funding in the past – Kentucky Proud, the Kentucky Beef Network, Kentucky Dairy Development Council, and Kentucky Horticulture Council.
Responding to Co-Chair Stone, Mr. Neaveill said GOAP will evaluate the status and available funding levels of yearly programs such as the On-Farm Energy Program.
In a response to Senator Gibson, Mr. Neaveill explained that the board and Agricultural Finance Corporation board in the past awarded tobacco funds to the former Large Scale Biology, now known as Kentucky BioProcessing, which gained national prominence recently because of its Ebola medicine, ZMapp, developed from tobacco plants. That type of funding would be unlikely now because of the limited impact on farmers due to the production methods and type of tobacco used.
Kentucky Agency for Substance Abuse Policy
Mr. Van Ingram, Executive Director, and Ms. Heather Wainscott, Branch Manager, Office of Drug Control Policy, and Ms. Amy Andrews, Kentucky Agency for Substance Abuse Policy (KY-ASAP) reported on KY-ASAP's tobacco and drug control programs that were funded with tobacco settlement moneys.
Mr. Ingram described the impact of 2012 and 2013 legislation designed to address Kentucky's drug problem. He noted the results of a survey that pointed to a decline in prescription drug use by teenagers. He described another program to maintain prescription drug disposal sites in the state, which now number over 173. Mr. Ingram said that 2012 legislation resulted in a decline in meth labs, but the state has experienced an increase in heroin usage.
Mr. Ingram explained the impact of the budget reduction in FY 2015 and FY 2016 during a time when the number of local ASAP programs has grown and more counties are establishing programs. A restoration of funding would be meaningful to local boards.
Representative Denham mentioned his longtime acquaintance with Mr. Ingram. He discussed the problem in his area of heroin addiction and cited the impact of programs to reduce prescription drug abuse.
Responding to Senator Higdon, Mr. Ingram indicated that, in many counties, faith-based groups take the lead in sponsoring local KY-ASAP programs.
In a response to Representative Mills, Ms. Andrews discussed a program in Carter County aimed at educating young employees about remaining drug-free in the workplace. The program works with companies offering employment opportunities. According to Ms. Wainscott, local boards are urged to share ideas for programs, such as the one in Carter County. Co-Chair Stone indicated that programs like that help communities that are attempting to lure industries.
Responding to Representative McKee, Mr. Ingram said companies have their own drug screening policies. Some companies have zero tolerance drug policies and some do not.
Documents distributed during the committee meeting are available with meeting materials in the LRC Library. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.