2022-07-01

Cost of July 4th cookout 17% higher compared to year ago

U.S. consumers will pay $69.68 for their favorite Independence Day cookout foods, including cheeseburgers, pork chops, chicken breasts, homemade potato salad, strawberries and ice cream, based on a new American Farm Bureau Federation marketbasket survey. The average cost of a summer cookout for ten people is $69.68, which breaks down to less than $7 per person. The overall cost for […]

MFBF President testifies on skyrocketing fuel prices, input costs

Montana Farm Bureau President Cyndi Johnson testified virtually at the Capitol June 24, during the “Skyrocketing Energy Costs Are Hurting Americans” forum hosted by the Committee on Natural Resources Republicans and the Committee on Energy and Commerce Republicans to examine the Biden administration’s energy policies and their impact on American families and businesses. In her testimony Johnson shared about fuel […]

New report shows rural voters rely on vote by mail and early voting

Restrictive voting legislation will impact millions of rural voters in the 2022 general elections

Voters in rural areas across the country heavily rely on alternative ways to vote, including voting by mail and in-person early voting, and newly proposed state legislation would restrict their ability to cast a ballot, according to a new report by the nonpartisan election policy group Secure Democracy USA. The report, The Forgotten Voters: How Current Threats to Voting Hurt […]

Tester, colleagues urge Biden administration to support skilled nursing facilities in rural areas

Senator Tester led 21 of his Senate colleagues in urging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to reconsider the agency’s proposed rule to update Medicare payment policies and rates for skilled nursing facilities. Tester and his colleagues highlighted that this action would result in a $320 million overall decrease in payments to long term care facilities, and expressed […]