Huron Expositor, 2006-05-03, Page 7.
r
News
Bruce farmers shocked to find grain
and oilseed aid clawed back
Dwight Irwin
It wasn't a letter bomb, but it
might as well have been.
When Huron Township farmer
John Gillespie opened an envelope
from the Ontario government last
Monday, he was expecting a small
piece of the $80 million promised to
grains and oilseeds farmers in the
2006 budget.
Instead, he received a shock when
his balance read $0.
All the envelope contained was a
form that stated what assistance
Gillespie had qualified for. The
amount of funding he was to receive
for his 84.5 acres of winter wheat,
spring grain, corn and soybeans
came to $1,023.35.
What befuddled Gillespie was the
fact there was exactly $1,023.35
worth of deductions made, leaving
him without a dime of the provincial
government's $80 million commit-
ment.
The invoice contained no informa-
tion as to why Gillespie will be
receiving nothing from the assis-
tance program.
Until he called Agricorp, the liai-
son between farmers and govern-
ment programs, he had no idea why.
he won't be receiving any assis-
tance.
He was told he will have to pay
back $6,172 for a 2003 Advanced
Ontario Agricultural payment and
2004. Canadian Agricultural Income
Stabilization (CAIS) funding, which
was offered to cattle farmers during
the BSE crisis, in 2004.
"They're clawing our CAIS money
back," an exasperated Gillespie
said.
"There was no warning, no public-
ity about it. You'll never get a press
release to say they're recovering
their CAIS money," he added.
"They pat themselves on the back
for giving us $80 million, but then
they claw their money back - it's
more than a little sneaky."
Gillespie said his understanding
is affected farmers will have to re-
file 2003 and 2004 income tax
returns and CAIS applications,
because of the claw -back.
"What a mess," he said.
Bruce County Federation of
Agriculture President Robert
Emerson, also a Huron Township
farmer, said Gillespie is not a ran-
dom case. He said the number of
farmers receiving little or no grains
and oilseeds payment is "alarmingly
widespread."
He said no past correspondence
about CAIS and the Transitional
Industry Support Program said any-
thing about these being loans,
John Gillespie
which is why farmers are so
shocked they now owe more than
they were to receive from the grains
and oilseeds assistance program.
Although complicated, he estimat-
ed $20 million will be clawed back
from farmers this spring.
"There are farmers who need to
get seed in the ground and to take
(assistance) back is a real kick in
the you -know -what," Emerson said,
especially when there was no warn-
ing and nothing that says repay-
ment would even be expected.
He said the Bruce federation is
gathering as much documentation
from
area farmers before approaching
Huron -Bruce MPP Carol Mitchell
and Minister of Agriculture Leona
Dombrowski.
"We want to get everything docu-
mented so we can go to the govern-
ment to get some sense worked into
this thing," Emerson said.
He said he has heard from numer-
ous farmers who cannot believe
what arrived in their mailbox on
Monday.
One. farmer, with 1,200 qualified
acres, will receive a payment of
$126 - about 10 cents an acre.
"That's just ridiculous," Emerson
said.
Gillespie said his $1,023 was
going to pay for land he will rent
this spring, but now he doesn't
know where that money will come
from.
"I guess I just won't pay for fuel or
fertilizer for a couple months and
pay my rent."
Both Gillespie and
Emerson said all this could
be avoided with a Risk
Management Program,
which Ontario farmers have
been lobbying for all spring.
He said the responsi-
bility does lie with the feder-
al
government to implement
the RMP, but the federation
has, in his words, "encour-
aged Ontario to take the
lead and put up their portion
of the money - all Ontario
did was come up with the
$80 million and ask the feds
to do the rest."
As for Gillespie, he
will continue talking to
other farmers affected by the
claw -back.
He said he knows of
15 who are in the same boat
as him. He -has spoken to
NDP leader Howard
Hampton's office and he
hopes to .have a face-to-face
with Mitchell, as well.
"I'm tired of hearing Carol
talk about how she's sup-
porting us and then kicking us
when we're down. We can't let her
get away with it all the time."
The Huron Expositor • May 3, 2006 Page 7
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