2023 New York Laws › AGM - Agriculture and Markets › Article 25-AA - Agricultural Districts › 309-A - Young Farmer Advisory Board on Agriculture.

§ 309-a. Young farmer advisory board on agriculture. 1. There shall be
established  within  the  department  the young farmer advisory board on
agriculture, to advise and make recommendations to the state agencies on
state government plans, policies and programs affecting agriculture,  as
outlined  below,  and  in  such  areas as its experience and studies may
indicate to be  appropriate.  The  department  shall  provide  necessary
secretariat and support services to the board.
2.  The  young  farmer  advisory board on agriculture shall consist of
twenty members, ten to be appointed by the governor, with the advice and
consent of the senate and assembly, selected for  their  experience  and
expertise  related  to areas of board responsibility. The board shall be
comprised of diverse members of the agriculture industry as follows:
(a) Of the twenty members appointed to the board:
(1) one shall be from the department;
(2) one shall be from the empire state development corporation;
(3) one shall be an officer of the Future Farmers of America (FFA);
(4) one shall be an urban farmer;
(5) one shall be from the New York Farm Bureau; and
(6) fifteen shall be from the general  public  appointed  as  follows:
five  to  be appointed by the temporary president of the senate, five to
be appointed by the speaker of the assembly, and five to be appointed by
the governor.
(b) Each member shall:
(1) be interested in the preservation and development  of  agriculture
and preservation of the agricultural way of life in New York;
(2)  be  under the age of forty-five years old at the beginning of the
member's term;
(3) derive at least fifty percent of the member's personal income from
farming or agricultural activities in the state;
(4) be a resident of the state; and
(5) be appointed for a term of three years and may serve  until  their
successors  are  chosen;  provided,  however,  that of the members first
appointed, six shall serve for a term of one year, six shall serve for a
term of two years and eight shall serve for a term of three years.
(c) Members shall serve  without  salary  but  shall  be  entitled  to
reimbursement of their ordinary and necessary travel expenses.
(d) The members of the board shall meet quarterly.
3.  The duties and responsibilities of the young farmer advisory board
on agriculture shall include, but not be limited to:
(a)  annually  electing  from  its  members  a  chairperson,  a   vice
chairperson,  and  a  secretary  of  the  advisory board at the advisory
board's first meeting of the calendar year;
(b) communicating to the general public, the federal  government,  and
the  state  government  the importance of young and beginning farmers to
agriculture in the state;
(c) identify issues relating to young and  beginning  farmers  in  the
state  and  provide  timely advice to the commissioner, the governor and
the relevant state agencies, with regard to the promotion of agriculture
as a career path and the economic  development  of  young  and  aspiring
farmers;
(d)  produce an annual report and provide such report to the governor,
the temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the assembly on
or before the end of each calendar year. Such report shall identify  and
prioritize policy issues which affect young and aspiring farmers; and
(e)  establish  committees, as necessary, to develop projects relating
to the aspects of life for young and beginning farmers in the state.