Hay bill would ease NM feed crisis - video

Before today's legislative action the only bill that cleared both the House and Senate and made its way to the Governor's desk was a bill loosening the rules on hay trucks on New Mexico highways. It's the subject of a lot of joking at the Capitol these days, but it's really a serious bill that affects agriculture statewide. It's all about drought, farmers, ranchers, and the great hay shortage afflicting New Mexico and the southwest. The bill would allow super-size tractor-trailer loads of hay to roll on New Mexico highways. In the drought, our farmers can't grow enough hay to keep beef and dairy cattle alive, so they're importing it, chiefly from Canada. "They're gettting this hay from Canada and bringing it down to New Mexico," said Sen. Stuart Ingle, a Portales Republican who is a farmer and a rancher. "We had to make it some way easier. The price is unbelievably high, but dairies can't stop and start. They continue to roll all the time. You gotta have hay or you don't make any milk."...more