Summit Executive Committee
June 4, 1999 Omni Southpark Hotel Austin, Texas

MINUTES

Members Present:
John Abernathy
Steve Harper
Mike Petter
Bob Stallman
Donnis Baggett
Ed Hiler
L.G. Raun
Janeal Stephens
J.B. Cooper
Roddy Peeples
John Schneider
Jim Stewart

Others in Attendance:
Joe Benningfield
Gene Nelson
Kyle Smith
Elaine Stewart
Chester Fehlis
Ed Price

Welcome/Introductions - Chair Donnis Baggett welcomed SEC members and guests at 10:06 a.m. Three new members: Janeal Stephens, Mike Petter, and Steve Harper introduced themselves and were welcomed by Donnis and the group. L.G. Raun spoke on rice information from the USDA, and indicated that he is doing his part to eliminate rice overstocks by giving 2 lb. packages of rice to those present.

Jim Stewart presented the minutes of the March 4, 1999 meeting. Following review by the committee, Jim Stewart moved to accept the minutes. The motion was seconded and approved by unanimous voice vote.

Treasury Report - Gene Nelson reported that the Summit Initiative account held $31,905. He is working with the account representative to itemize all account transactions. We will continue to strive to make all events self-supporting. Gene mentioned that a $20,000 grant proposal has been sent to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, but no word has come back yet. L.G. Raun inquired about an endowment to fund the Summit process. Gene Nelson suggested that this topic be discussed further at the next SEC meeting. Bob Stallman moved to accept the treasury report. The motion was seconded by L.G. and passed by unanimous voice vote.

Texas 2000 - Kyle Smith of the Texas Ag Extension Service spoke on Texas 2000: Proposal for a Youth Leadership Summit on Agriculture and Natural Resources. This project seeks to involve all young people in Texas to maintain prominence of Texas agriculture. It will provide a forum for youth to voice concerns and speak openly about agriculture and natural resource issues, and will seek to inform them of career opportunities and the importance of Texas agriculture. This is currently in the early planning stages.

Discussion related to the size of the audience (200+ youth) and location (possibly the TAMU campus, others?). Jim Stewart proposed that organizations might sponsor youth from non-traditional areas to increase the diversity of attendees and help out those who could not otherwise afford to come. Discussion then focused on possible dates, length of the conference, and involving the students in discussion. The involvement of the various collaborators was discussed, including financial and/or planning assistance. Kyle Smith indicated that he would like for this to be an official Summit activity. The Texas 2000 program would seek to complement the leadership activities done by 4-H, FFA, Farm Bureau, breed associations, and others, not compete with them.
John Abernathy indicated that we will need to work hard at getting students there that are not interested in agriculture. Donnis suggested removing the word agriculture from the name of the summit. He also inquired about what product will come from this conference. Will it be a blueprint on how to influence youth toward agriculture? Or possibly just an educational prompt? J.B. Cooper suggested that an initial meeting could be conducted with agricultural students to get a feel for how to reach other students, and subsequent conferences would use this information to reach out to the non-ag students.

Janeal Stephens inquired about who would kick off the conference to get the students motivated. Kyle Smith indicated that it would be someone young and energetic. John Abernathy suggested involving science teachers from around the state. L.G. Raun wondered about extending the age range of the participants, but Kyle issued concerns over liability and possible management problems. Bob Stallman moved to accept the idea as an official Summit event, and it was seconded by Jim Stewart. Following discussion, the motion passed unanimously.

Biotechnology Summit - Gene Nelson presented an updated prospectus on the Biotechnology Summit, of which Dr. John Mullet of Texas A&M's Biochemistry and Biophysics Department is the planning committee chair. Gene indicated that the Summit will take place in Austin at the Omni Southpark Hotel on September 29 and 30, 1999. The focus of the Summit will be on technology transfer, economic development, etc. The tentative agenda includes three keynote speakers to set the tone for the summit. Case studies of what other states have done will follow, and then work will begin on developing a proposal for Texas. This will be charged to the breakout work groups who will meet over the course of both days. The summit will culminate with a capstone address by someone in the Texas state government, focusing on the results of the summit. Discussion then focused on the speakers for the summit, the involvement of non-favorable biotech interests, consumer acceptance, etc.

Texas Community Futures Forum - Chester Fehlis of the Texas Ag Extension Service (TAEX) discussed the Texas Community Futures Forum, which was a series of meetings involving over 12,000 Texas citizens from all 254 counties. These forums sought to find out what issues and needs are important to the citizens of each individual county in the near future. Obviously, the Extension Service can not help in all problems, but they can help with several, and can get the people together who can solve the other problems. Chester went through examples of a few counties and their concerns. He indicated that each county will develop an action plan, and that the Extension Service will eventually compile a list of 25 top issues. TAEX will then work with other state and federal agencies in addressing these issues. Discussion followed on the manner of these forums, how the issues will be addressed, etc.

International Summit - Ed Price of the International Agriculture Program at Texas A&M spoke on the International Summit. He and Parr Rosson, of Texas A&M's Department of Ag Economics, are co-chairs for the summit. The initial plans and topics include trade (technology transfer, rural community impact, etc.), trade barriers (technical and non-technical), export services, and markets. These topics will be tied into the specifics of Texas, and hopefully this summit will lead to state and/or federal initiatives regarding international marketing of Texas products.

Legislative Update - Ed Hiler passed out information on the major agricultural bills to come from the recently completed 76th Legislative Session in Austin. He also distributed two sheets outlining the funds given to various agricultural and natural resource agencies, and the initiatives that will be funded through the different branches of the Agriculture Program. The committee discussed this information as well as other bills.

New SEC member Mike Petter spoke on the Texas Agriculture Lifetime Leadership (TALL) Program and his gratitude for being invited to serve on the SEC. He detailed the involvement of TALL alumni in a variety of ag ventures, conferences, and all areas of the agriculture industry.

Congressional Intern Program Report - Joe Benningfield passed out information detailing the ten year history and growth of Texas A&M's Agriculture and Natural Resource Policy Congressional Intern Program. Joe, Ed Hiler, and John Abernathy spoke of the focus, scope, and success of both the TAMU program and the recently developed program at Texas Tech.

Future Summit Activities - Donnis spoke on the need for a Next Farm Bill Summit. Discussion on a time frame that would maximize the effectiveness of such a summit focused on the need to schedule this event within one year (Spring 2000).

It was decided by general consensus that the next SEC meeting will take place at the Omni Southpark hotel in Austin at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 28, 1999. This is the day prior to the beginning of the Biotechnology Summit.

Membership Issues - It was decided by general consensus to invite J. Mark McLaughlin, the new president of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, to become a member of the SEC. He will replace Coney Burgess, whose term as president of the TSCRA has ended.

Discussion initiated by Steve Harper focused on the need for increasing value-added processing businesses in the state. Steve agreed to chair a group to look into this problem further. Others will be named to the group later by Gene Nelson and Donnis Baggett.

It was moved and seconded to adjourn. The motion passed unanimously, and the meeting was adjourned by Donnis at 1:58 p.m.