Local officials, farmers fight to keep Ag. Dept. Corzine's proposal criticized as quick way to get rid of farms BY JESSICA SMITH Staff Writer OLD BRIDGE- Township and county officials have planted a seed of opposition in response to Gov. Jon Corzine's proposal to do away with the state Department of Agriculture. Old Bridge farmers John and Carolyn Hauser, of Ticetown Road, put together a resolution standing against the department's abolishment, which the Township Council adopted at its meeting Monday. "Being one of a few states without one of these departments is going to put us in a league we don't want to be in," Council President Ed Testino said. Alaska and Rhode Island are the only two states without a department of agriculture, and New Jersey would become the third if Corzine's proposed budget passes in July. As part of some drastic budget maneuvers, the governor proposed doing away with the Department of Agriculture, as well as the state departments of commerce and personnel. Some of the 245 employees of the Department of Agriculture would be moved into other existing departments to fulfill their duties, but those employed by the department have yet to see a plan for how such a move would be orchestrated, according to Lynne Richmond, a public information officer for the department. "Right now, we don't know what will occur because it is a proposal," Richmond said. John Hauser and other local farmers do not want to wait to find out. According to Hauser, a fourth-generation farmer, the future looks grim if the department is dissolved, as it is an invaluable resource to those in the agricultural field. Also, New Jersey is one of the toughest places for a farmer to exist, he said. "If we don't have someone there fighting for us, boy, it's going to be very difficult for us to stay here," Hauser said. According to documents from the New Jersey Farm Bureau Web site, more than half the department's employees have been deemed essential, while the average number of essential employees in other state agencies is about 28 percent. In another line of defense for farmers, the Hausers and about a dozen others sought the support of the Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders, which passed a similar resolution on March 20. Before voting on the measure, the freeholders changed the wording to petition lawmakers to "take all steps necessary to preserve the department as a Cabinet-level position." "From everything I've read and in all the conversations I've had on this issue, I just can't see how abolishing the Department of Agriculture will save any substantial amount of money," Freeholder Director David B. Crabiel said. Hauser agreed, saying the move would only save a total of about $500,000. He also said the loss of the department would bring the loss of important benefits to the state. For example, the Department of Agriculture develops nutritional guidelines for public schools throughout New Jersey. For each dollar the state puts toward meal programs, there is a $25 return from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), he said. "They've got to be aware of what they might lose in support from the USDA," Hauser said. According to the New Jersey Farm Bureau, the Department of Agriculture receives more than $328 million each year in federal funding. Farming throughout the state accounts for $82 billion in revenue annually, the bureau states in a fact sheet. The state farm bureau is spearheading a protest rally to take place in front of the StatehouseAnnex in TrentonApril 1 in an effort to preserve the department. Slated to include a "tractorcade" and horses, the protest will begin at 10 a.m. Afruit and vegetable farmer who tends to a total of about 400 acres, mostly within the township, Hauser knows the many ways in which the Department of Agriculture is helpful to farmers. He said the Jersey Fresh program has been helpful in boosting sales of produce, and the Right to Farm Act is especially useful for farmers in the state. Due to residential developments that often surround farms, the act became necessary so that farmers could perform the duties of their trade without problems from neighboring homeowners, Hauser said. In other important areas, the department is responsible for infestations by insects, as well as for performing inspections on livestock to check for possible diseases or other threats, according to Hauser. Although farmers comprise less than 1 percent of New Jersey's population, Hauser said, they represent 50 percent of the open space that is left in the state. "So we're a small group of people, but it impacts everyone," Hauser said. Old Bridge resident Ann Miller, whose 12.5 acres were placed into the state's Farmland Preservation Program in 2004, came out to Monday's council meeting to express her support for the resolution. "I think it's very important to keep the Department of Agriculture," Miller said. "After all, we are known as the Garden State." Most of Miller's land is in woodland management, with about 1.5 acres still devoted to growing produce. Miller said she informally sells her crops to neighbors and other residents. "It just doesn't make any sense to do away with the Department of Agriculture," Miller said. "They direct and guide the farmers in many manners. If they want to do away with all the farms, that's a quick way to do it, I guess."