The Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) exists in part to represent the ag retail industry’s interests at the federal level as well as educate members of Congress and their staff about the issues that matter most to our industry. The goal is to bring about regulatory reform and commonsense legislation.
Essential Grassroots Engagement
But our team of public policy experts cannot achieve this goal without the grassroots engagement from our membership. When elected officials in Congress hear directly from you or see firsthand how businesses like yours support employees, farmers and communities, it is the best way to show the impact of your work on Capitol Hill.
ARA member-companies have the exclusive opportunity to directly influence and determine the association’s annual public policy positions and priorities. This collective voice works to impact change across federal agencies and Congress.
Impact the Association’s Policy Priorities
During the ARA winter board and committee meetings, the ARA public policy committee proposes the new policy priorities to the board of directors for approval. You can participate in meetings from Feb. 14-16 to get involved and up to date on ARA’s 2022 public policy priorities as well as its efforts related to unique member service offerings, conference planning and the strategic plan for the association going forward.
Meet Virtually with Members of Congress
Join the effort during the annual ARA Legislative Fly-In—to be held virtually from Feb. 22 through April 8—to have conversations with your members of Congress about the value your company offers along the supply chain. Discussion topics are as follows:
- Transportation & supply chain solutions related to roads, bridges, rail, harbors, etc.;
- Ag labor & workforce needs including flexibility for drivers and visa programs;
- Climate change & sustainable agriculture incentives and carbon market participation;
- Energy initiatives that include all liquid fuels to reduce foreign dependency and emissions;
- Economic growth & trade policies that
- preserve ag-friendly tax incentives and free trade of ag products;
- Modern ag technology investment in research and development and protecting essential crop protection tools; and
- Farm bill priorities for crop insurance program protection and prevented planting dates.
Last year, more than 100 ARA members participated in more than 120 virtual meetings with their elected officials as part of the 2021 ARA Fly-In. Since then, ARA has celebrated advocacy wins for the ag retail industry related to infrastructure, ocean shipping reform, flexibility for drivers and more.
Congressional Facility Visit Guide
We know that firsthand experience is the best way for people to understand the ag retail business and the magnitude of its impact in the industry. Many, if not most, elected officials have never stepped foot into an agricultural retail facility.
Hosting a member of Congress from your district is a great way to showcase an ag retail facility and educate policymakers about the value your business offers to its employees, farmers and rural community.
Ag retail facilities will have a prime opportunity to invite their members of Congress and their staff for an educational visit as they return to their districts in April. Now is the time to begin to plan for these visits and extend the invitations.
ARA recently updated its Congressional Facility Visit Guide for its members. The simple, step-by-step resource provides best practices and media samples to guide your team through a successful facility visit that will pave the way to a productive relationship with your legislators and their staff.
Entry-Level Driver Training
In response to new Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration entry-level driver training requirements that began on Feb. 7, ARA hosted a webinar in January led by a driver training solutions adviser at J.J. Keller to help the ARA membership to better understand the new regulations.
Those who attended the live webinar were able to pose questions directly to the subject matter expert, and those who were unable to attend can view the recording and others with their ARA member login.
Strengthen Our Industry’s Collective Voice
Getting engaged with ARA provides multiple paths to take a proactive approach to grassroots advocacy. By playing an active role with any of the aforementioned opportunities or by simply being an ARA member, you are strengthening our industry’s collective force in Washington, D.C.
Any employee of an ARA member company may sign up to participate in upcoming virtual meetings and utilize member-exclusive resources such as ARA’s Congressional Facility Visit Guide and webinar recordings. Whether you’re an ARA member representative or not, you can learn more about the value of our industry’s collective voice and how to get involved at aradc.org.
