PA curtails bee inspection for 2010

[buzzbee]

Inspector program budget cuts

Last year we had a budget of about $200,000 which paid for the regional inspectors for a total of 210 40 hour workweeks.

This years very limited funding was for a total of 64 37.5 work weeks. a very sharp decrease. That there is a program at all is testimony to the PA Department of Agriculture's commitment to the apiary inspection program. There were no funds allocated in the governors budget.

Beekeepers should be encouraged to write letters. They should be addressed to their local representatives, as well as members of the agricultural and rural affairs committee in the Senate.

These links will lead you to the contact information for the Pa House and Senate Agriculture Committees and you can also find the contact information for other members of State government. In the Senate:
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/cteeInfo/cteeInfo.cfm?cde=3&body=S
and in the House of Representatives:
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/cteeInfo/cteeInfo.cfm?cde=2&body=H

The chair and minority chair of both committees should be contacted at the very least.

This from PA beekeepeers
http://www.pastatebeekeepers.org/

Maybe Bjorn could further comment on this.