Last Thursday, we posted Todd Miller's deer farm was depopulated Tuesday, about the captive deer on the farm run by Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Jeremy Miller's brother being put down after Chronic Wasting Disease, an always lethal, infectious prion disease of cervidae, was found in one of the herd.
In late September, we posted Chronic Wasting Disease: St. Louis County permanently bans new or expanded cervid farms .
Firearm whitetail deer season is nearly open for adults in Minnesota, and CWR is on Minnesotans' minds. Frequent correspondent Terry Mikulich wrote the editors of the Duluth News Tribune in a letter published October 20 that Minnesota senators fail deer hunters on CWD:
The upcoming deer season is prefaced by the political season. Minnesota Senate Republicans and candidates for Senate offices need to answer a very important question: Are they going to follow the Republican leader of the Senate and not do enough about the expansion of chronic wasting disease in the state of Minnesota?
Late Sen. David Tomassoni and current Sens. Tom Bakk, Jason Rarick, and Justin Eichorn have fallen in behind Sen. Jeremy Miller and voted down a bill that would have put a hold on all new deer and elk farms in Minnesota. According to news coverage, Sen. Miller shut down debate on this bill and held a caucus meeting. After the meeting, all but one Republican senator voted the bill down. Coming out later was that Sen. Miller’s brother is a deer farmer and his herd had chronic wasting disease.
Our sitting senators failed Northeastern Minnesota deer hunters. Deer hunters, don’t let politicians follow the Senate leader on this. The future of deer hunting depends on you.
That is actually the amendment Bluestem first reported in Senate DFL Leader Franzen raises conflict-of-interest concerns in Republican leader's role overturning bipartisan vote to protect wild deer.
That "conflict of interest" --for which no ethics complaint was ever filed--related to the deer farms which have a business address that's shared by other businesses owned and operated by members of the Miller family, as per the example discussed in On Facebook, operator of CWD doomed Winona County deer farm wears Miller Scrap hat.
The Minnesota Reformer's Ricardo Lopez picked up and expanded the story in Senate majority leader’s family ties to deer farming under scrutiny in CWD vote,noting:
Todd Miller also serves as vice president of the Minnesota Deer Farmers Association, according to the non-profit’s most recent 990 IRS tax filing. He has been active in helping shape state rules on deer farming, giving testimony to the Board of Animal Health.
Much more action on CWD and captive deer farms has been proposed in the lower chamber. On Wednesday, we were sent the press release in Reps. Hansen, Ecklund, and Becker-Finn Urge Action to Combat Chronic Wasting Disease:
With the 2022 Minnesota firearms deer hunting season approaching, concerns around the increasing spread of Chronic Wasting Disease among the state's Cervidae population are mounting. DFL members of the House Environment and Natural Resources Finance and Policy committee are calling for immediate action on several measures to combat the disease.
“The Legislature must take immediate action to prevent the spread of CWD which is devastating our deer population. The health of our natural environment hinges on our ability to manage this crisis,” said Rep. Rick Hansen (DFL - South Saint Paul), Chair of the House Environment and Natural Resources Finance and Policy committee. “Continued inaction will result in irrevocable harm to the white-tailed deer population, and the implication of the potential spread of CWD prions to human populations is cause for great concern.”
CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects cervids, including white-tailed deer. The lawmakers are proposing strong measures to combat CWD including an immediate moratorium on deer farms, and a requirement for closure and exclusion plans for deer farms. Deer farms have consistently proven to be hotbeds for CWD and are central to the state’s efforts to combat the disease. They are also promoting expanded funding for hunter-harvested carcass disposal, implementation of hunter service centers instead of surgical kits, and to continue prion research funding.
“In a matter of days, my family and I will join a half-million other Minnesotans when we take part in the deer opener. CWD continues to threaten this cherished tradition and serious action from the Legislature is long overdue,” said Rep. Rob Ecklund (DFL – International Falls). “We have solutions before us that tackle CWD from several different directions, and I hope my Republican colleagues can join us to protect our state’s deer population.”
During the 2021 legislative session, the Minnesota House’s Environment and Natural Resources Finance bill included a series of provisions authored by Rep. Ecklund including additional requirements for deer farms, a live-testing requirement for farmed deer, a prohibition on the importation of farmed deer from other states with CWD, and a ban on new registrations for the possession of farmed white-tailed deer. The bill also would have transferred oversight of farmed deer from the Board of Animal Health to the Department of Natural Resources. The Republican-controlled Senate refused to consider the measures.
The representatives are also proposing expanded deer monitoring for PFAS, and neonicotinoids in deer to track and understand additional factors which impact the health of the deer population.
“Minnesota has a strong tradition of hunting and if we are to continue to pass this tradition on to future generations we must take action to prevent and eliminate CWD,” said Rep. Jamie Becker-Finn (DFL - Roseville), lead author of legislation to limit deer farming operations. “As a hunter, the continued inaction from our Republican colleagues has been incredibly frustrating. I urge them to join us in our efforts to fight CWD so we can protect Minnesota’s hunting heritage.”
To learn more about CWD and what actions they can take to prevent its spread, hunters can visit the Minnesota DNR’s CWD web page.
This press release yielded a bit of coverage. There's the Minnesota News Network piece at KTOE: House DFLers Call for Action to Curb Spread of Chronic Wasting Disease, with a focus on Ecklund.
At KGFO, serving the Fargo-Moorhead area, Don Haney reported in Minnesota House DFLers call for action to curb spread of chronic wasting disease;
Minnesota House Democrats are calling for action to stop the spread of chronic wasting disease nine days before the firearms deer season opener. Representative Rob Ecklund of International Falls says there needs to be more CWD hunter service centers and to expand funding for deer carcass disposal.
Ecklund and members of the House Environment and Natural Resources Committee are also proposing a moratorium on new deer farms which they call “hotbeds” for CWD. He says it’s about protecting the tradition of deer hunting in Minnesota.
However, some lawmakers accuse them of attacking agriculture. Ecklund says he’s [not] attacking anybody. He says agriculture is a very valuable economy.
No sources or names for those lawmakers making those accusations.
At Fergus Now, another media hub, there's Dave Bishop reporting Northern Minnesota Lawmaker Wants Ban On New Deer Farms:
A northern Minnesota lawmaker is calling for a ban on new deer farms. Representative Rob Iceland [sic] says steps need to be taken to fight the spread of chronic wasting disease in wild deer.
He says an end to deer farms could protect the wild deer population in the state.
He is partnering with Representative Rick Hansen and Representative Jamie Becker-Finn to propose an immediate moratorium on new deer farms.
The President of the Minnesota Deer Farmers Association says a moratorium is an extreme response and that deer farmers can work with the state to fix issues with herd health.
That report seems to be a short version of Northern News Now's Northern Minnesota lawmaker calls for ban on new deer farms, Nora McKeown reporting:
It’s been about seven months since Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) was detected in a wild deer in Northeast Minnesota for the first time ever.
With the arrival of a new hunting season, a Northern Minnesota lawmaker want to take new steps to fight the spread of the always-deadly brain disease.
Rep. Rob Ecklund (DFL) of International Falls said he’s been hunting deer for more than 50 years.
“My children, and I’m hoping grandchildren when they’re on the way, are going to want to continue that tradition,” Ecklund said. “I know my boys, all three of them, do want to continue that tradition.”
He worries that CWD could one day wipe out the whitetail deer population in the state and believes deer farms could expedite the process.
That’s why he is partnering with Rep. Rick Hansen and Rep. Jamie Becker-Finn to propose an immediate moratorium on new deer farms.
“We just believe that in order to protect the wild deer herd, we got to put measures in place to make sure there’s no contact between captive cervids and the wild white tail herd,” said Ecklund.
But Scott Fier, President of the Minnesota Deer Farmers Association, said a moratorium is an extreme response to an issue that deer farmers are willing to work with state agencies to fix.
“I wish we could work together with the DNR and whoever’s willing to work with us, to come to a common solution to combat CWD,” said Fier.
He said deer farmers are the last people who want to see CWD spread.
However, Ecklund said past attempts to pass regulations on the farms, like double fencing and redundant gates, have been halted by republican lawmakers.
“We just had a tough time getting anything through the GOP-controlled senate,” said Ecklund.
At the end of the day, Fier said, everybody is on the side of ending the spread.
He just hopes there’s a way to do it without putting a stop to deer farming.
“How do I create a business model or business plan a year or five years from now? Ten, 20 years from now when I want my children to take over the family farm? I can’t. Because I don’t know, I could be shut down tomorrow,” said Fier.
Ecklund said the legislation will go before Minnesota lawmakers at the start of the next legislative session in January.
It's worth noting that despite the apparent division between the House DFLers in the press release and the actions of the Senate Majority Leader and Senate Ag committee chair Torrey Westrom, R-Alexandria, detering new deer farms and shutting down existing ones hasn't been a strictly partisan issue.
Importantly, however: the House Republican "shut them down" solution is buying out the deer farmers.
During the session, Greg Stanley reported for the Star Tribune in Minnesota lawmakers would ban new captive deer farms to prevent spread of chronic wasting disease:
Minnesota lawmakers will try to block new captive deer farms from opening in an attempt to stop or slow the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in wild deer.
Both Republicans and Democrats in the House have proposed moratoriums on new whitetail farms, which have been hotbeds for the always-fatal CWD — a neurological disease caused by a disordered protein called a prion.
But it's unclear how much support they will have in the Senate to enact a full-fledged ban, as lawmakers weigh the risk that trophy game farms pose to the state's beloved wild deer, moose and elk herds.
Rep. Rob Ecklund, DFL-International Falls, said he understands the stress that deer farm owners have been under as CWD — and state-imposed regulations to fight it — upend their businesses.
"But our wild whitetail deer could be facing the same thing, and that's what I've been working on — making sure we save that industry," he said.
There are about 150 deer and elk farms in Minnesota, down from 400 in 2005. The animals are commonly bred or genetically modified to produce giant bucks for clients to shoot inside the fenced enclosure of a farm. Some raise the animals commercially for venison and to produce deer attractants for hunters, among other uses. . . .
Minnesota lawmakers will try to block new captive deer farms from opening in an attempt to stop or slow the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in wild deer.
Both Republicans and Democrats in the House have proposed moratoriums on new whitetail farms, which have been hotbeds for the always-fatal CWD — a neurological disease caused by a disordered protein called a prion.
But it's unclear how much support they will have in the Senate to enact a full-fledged ban, as lawmakers weigh the risk that trophy game farms pose to the state's beloved wild deer, moose and elk herds.
Rep. Rob Ecklund, DFL-International Falls, said he understands the stress that deer farm owners have been under as CWD — and state-imposed regulations to fight it — upend their businesses.
"But our wild whitetail deer could be facing the same thing, and that's what I've been working on — making sure we save that industry," he said.
There are about 150 deer and elk farms in Minnesota, down from 400 in 2005. The animals are commonly bred or genetically modified to produce giant bucks for clients to shoot inside the fenced enclosure of a farm. Some raise the animals commercially for venison and to produce deer attractants for hunters, among other uses. . . .
Rep. John Burkel, R-Badger, said he would like the state to compensate deer farmers for their losses related to movement restrictions.
"Whatever our personal views are on deer farms at the moment, it's incumbent upon us to alleviate some of this financial pressure that the state of Minnesota and the DNR forced these small farms to endure," he said.
Rep. Josh Heintzeman, R-Nisswa, said he would offer deer farmers a buyout — the potential cost of which is unclear.
"This is just a starting point but we need to have this conversation," Heintzeman said. "There are a lot of difficulties that deer farmers are facing in Minnesota and maybe [a buyout] is the best option for those folks if they so choose."
Heintzeman serves as the minority lead of the Minnesota House Environment and Natural Resources Finance and Policy Committee. As the press release noted, Hansen chairs the committee
Related posts
- Chronic Wasting Disease: St. Louis County permanently bans new or expanded cervid farms
- On Facebook, operator of CWD doomed Winona County deer farm wears Miller Scrap hat
- MN Board of Animal Health: CWD confirmed in quarantined Winona County captive deer herd
- Update: More on Miller family deer farm interests
- Senate DFL Leader Franzen raises conflict-of-interest concerns in Republican leader's role overturning bipartisan vote to protect wild deer
Photo: A wild whitetail buck.
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