These members represent a collective 110 years of participation in the Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association. We mark their milestone anniversaries by thanking them—and each of you—for your commitment to the shortline industry and the Association that supports it.

New Holland announced last week that the company has appointed Bret Lieberman to lead the brand as Vice President of North America, effective immediately. Lieberman will be based in New Holland, Pa.

Vermeer Corporation in Pella, Iowa, in partnership with the Iowa State University Research Park in Ames, broke ground last week on the Vermeer Applied Technology Hub – a space that will be shared by students, faculty and Vermeer software engineers, who together intend to advance technology in agricultural and industrial equipment.

Twenty-eight states have filed suit seeking relief from the rule, which becomes effective August 28. The American Farm Bureau, the National Corn Growers Association, the National Association of Manufacturers, and at least 10 other agencies and associations also have collectively asked a federal court to vacate the rule.

Kibble Equipment, Inc. has begun building a 48,000-square-foot building for its Deere dealership in Sleepy Eye, Minn.

Ag-Pro Companies announced last week the acquisition of eleven Deere dealerships in southern Texas.

DO Equipment Co., which is based in Fargo, N.D., has acquired three Deere construction stores in Montana.

The 145-year-old futures trading pit in Chicago, described by the Wall Street Journal as “one of the last vestiges of the swashbuckling era of commodities floor trading,” shut down most of its operation this week.

Last week, on the same day the USDA released its annual acreage report, it announced plans to reassess crops in four states affected by recent volatile weather.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service, a division of the USDA, said it will reassess cotton crops in Texas, soybeans in Missouri and Arkansas, and sorghum and soybeans in Kansas.

A New Zealand couple thought they were hearing tales from their son’s dreams when the 3-year-old described a man with a light outside at night. They learned differently recently when, in the pre-dawn hours, their son woke them with an “absolutely gut-wrenching scream,” the mother told stuff.co.nz.

White House officials said last week that the administration will review and update its regulatory process governing genetically modified crops and other biotechnology products, describing the current system as outdated, confusing and unable to “foster public confidence.”

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled June 29 that costs associated with the EPA’s new regulations on power plant emissions were too exorbitant to justify in the context of the nominal public benefit the regulations created.

National for-profit insurers appear to be on an anxious mission to consolidate, which will reduce competition and consumer choice, wrote Dr. Scott Gottlieb in a commentary in the Wall Street Journal.
If the Anthem-Cigna merger succeeds, the national arena of big insurers will fall from five to three, which Gottlieb, a physician and resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, describes as a “direct consequence of ObamaCare.”

An Association member company is searching for a maintenance mechanic to perform all aspects of mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, and preventive maintenance on equipment used to manufacture farm tillage implements. The candidate must have at least three years mechanical/electrical/hydraulic experience.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled in favor of President Obama’s Affordable Care Act, deciding specifically that the federal government may subsidize health insurance for the poor and middle class.

“While the Supreme Court today ruled in favor of the premium subsidies that make health care more affordable for many Americans, the fact still remains that small businesses are suffering under the financial strain of the HIT. This tax directly correlates to increased health care costs, and more specifically higher premiums, for small business owners, their employees and their families. Congress must take this first step to repeal the HIT before unaffordable coverage becomes the status quo for Main Street.”

U.S. Supreme Court will consider limiting the power of unions who represent government employees to collect fees from employees who are not union members. The teachers want the court to overturn a legal precedent that said unions can require non-members to pay for bargaining costs as long as the fees don’t go toward political purposes.

The Obama administration last week announced a proposed rule that would more than double the salary threshold for guaranteed overtime pay to $50,440. The current threshold is $23,660.

An Association member company is searching for candidates to fill five positions. The rapidly growing company seeks professionals for openings in Washington, Oregon, and Southern California.

U.S. Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) introduced legislation June 24 to make permanent a 50% depreciation bonus on new equipment and property purchases.

He said the move will encourage investments and economic growth by allowing businesses to deduct half the cost of new purchases immediately, potentially driving reinvestment and growth.

Edwin Eivinsen – Crawford’s of Alberta and served as President of the Farm Equipment Wholesaler’s Association in 1984.

The ingenuity of the American farmer and the agriculture industry is celebrated in an exhibit that opened last week at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.

Alamo Group Inc. has promoted Brett Lauer to Territory Manager for Herschel Ag Parts, a brand within the group. Lauer has been with Alamo Group, Iowa, for three years, where he has served in customer service and product support roles for Herschel and Valu-Bilt products.

If you are a manufacturer, wholesaler or independent representative selling shortline farm equipment and have been a regular attendee of our annual Fall Marketing and Distribution Convention, the bullet points below are likely all you will need to read of this article before moving on to the rest of the newsletter. The rest of this article will be addressed to members and prospective members who have not attended this annual convention.

Alliance Tire Americas, Inc., recently announced the appointment of five staff members, including Agriculture Product Manager Trent Wallin. – Wallin has for the past eight years been part of the national ag sales team of Tyres 4 U, Australia’s leading independent tire distributor.

Art’s-Way Manufacturing recently released second quarter results. In the second quarter, sales for the company’s Ag sector, its biggest, were $6.4 million compared to $7.6 million in 2014.

Labor Department expected to propose a rule as early as this week that would double the salary-level threshold at which employers must pay overtime. Under the anticipated rule, salaried workers who earn less than $52,000 a year would be eligible for overtime pay.

L.F. Trottier & Sons, moving its Deere dealership to a bigger location in Hartland, Vt.

Koenig Equipment, an 11-store Deere dealer, opens a new Greenville, Ohio, location.

When the U.S. Supreme Court resumes in October, among cases it will consider is Tyson Foods v. Bouaphakeo. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and NAM are among groups who have asked the high court to hear arguments in the case, which could curb class action litigation

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday issued a ruling on patent royalties that the National Law Journal characterizes as a blow to inventors who may not know the intricacies of patent licensing agreements.

Weather patterns in much of the United States this month forced growers to park their tractors and consider alternative crops.

Tropical Storm Bill soaked—even flooded—farmland in sections of the Midwest, but in the days since the storm, it is difficult to assess its cost.

A bill seen as essential to the success of a trade deal with Japan and 11 other Pacific-rim countries cleared its final hurdle Wednesday when the U.S. Senate passed Trade Promotion Authority, also known as the fast-track bill.

The Federal Aviation Administration announced last week it will finalize rules on commercial drone use within 12 months. This is ahead of a previous target date of early 2017. “The rule will be in place within a year,” FAA Deputy Administrator Michael Whitaker said in recent testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives Oversight and Government Reform Committee. “Hopefully before June 17, 2016.”

Administrators must continue “to monitor trust investments and remove imprudent ones… This continuing duty exists separate and apart from the trustee’s duty to exercise prudence in selecting investments at the outset.”

Gov. Terry Branstad (R) signed a “Connect Every Acre” high-speed broadband bill into law in a machine shed in Perry, Iowa, on Monday, Radio Iowa reported. The bill helps coordinate and facilitate broadband access in targeted service areas throughout the state, and it establishes a grant program to communication service providers.

Oregon man files suit against his eye surgeon seeking funds to cover costs of two subsequent surgeries he needed to correct the first one. His suit is complicated, however, by his signing a paper he was unable to read.

The publication Industry Week offered manufacturers insight last week into just how vulnerable we are to data breaches and suggested a few strategies to mitigate the risk.

Highlights from the Association of Equipment Manufacturers’ Ag Flash Reports. For complete data, go to FarmEquip.org/flash.

A recently released economist’s report on farmland values reveals diminishing worth, although prices differ dramatically from state to state. An unrelated report from a farm-and-ranch real estate company suggests that this year’s harvest may be pivotal in reversing the decline.

Machinery Pete launched a new website last week and announced the appointment of two senior leaders: CEO Kevin Doyle, formerly with Apartments.com, and VP of Sales Bill Weber, formerly with Deere.

Ernie Goss, Creighton’s economist, reported that the farm equipment sales index was 12.5, which repeats a record low from May. This is the 23rd consecutive month that the reading has been below 50.

Topcon Positioning Group announced June 10 that it bought Norac Systems International, a developer of ultrasonic sensing and boom control technology for agricultural equipment. Norac’s product line includes systems to precisely maintain a spray boom height above the top of the crop or the ground to ensure optimum application of fertilizers and plant protection products.

Manufacturer News reported recently that Abe Hughes, who held the top spot at New Holland in North America, is no longer with the company. Brad Crews, chief operations officer for NAFTA at CNH, will assume responsibilities in the interim for the New Holland Agriculture and Construction brands in North America.

Minnesota lawmakers last week approved spending $23 million for several programs responding to the bird flu epidemic and investing nearly $27 million in poultry testing facilities at the University of Minnesota.

Deere has announced a partnership with King Agro, a manufacturer of carbon fiber technology products, to develop and distribute carbon fiber booms exclusively for Deere application equipment.

I have had the pleasure the last few weeks of meeting with the Association’s Board of Directors and leadership of the Associate Supplier Section. The meetings were outstanding opportunities to hear more about the boots-on-the-ground experiences in the industry and to explore how the Association can best be of service to its members in years to come.

More than 2,400 exhibitors from 49 countries have registered to participate in Agritechnica 2015, the annual autumn trade fair for agricultural machinery and equipment in Hanover, Germany. Registrations on track with record-breaking participation

Supreme Court rules a 66-year-old program that lets the government take crop away from farmers to help reduce supply and boost market prices is unconstitutional.

“Let them sell wine’ is probably not much more comforting to the raisin growers than similar retorts have been to others throughout history,” he wrote. “Property rights cannot be so easily manipulated.”

A group of environmentalists has sued California and federal officials, claiming the governmental bodies are harming fish and wildlife in their efforts to deliver more water to farms and cities, the Sacramento Bee reported recently.

Talks began last week between executives at U.S. Steel and leaders of the 30,000-member United Steelworkers Union. Circumstances in the American steel industry make this negotiation especially high-stakes.

The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) has initiated a project to revise ANSI/ASAE S315.4, Agricultural Baling Twine for Automatic Balers. Seeks input from manufacturers…

Titan Machinery has reported financial results for its quarter ending April 30, defined as the first quarter for fiscal year 2016.

Titan reported equipment sales down by $100 million compared to the same quarter last year. Sales fell by $345 million in FY 2015 to $245 million in FY 2016.

The boards of directors of the Western Equipment Dealers Association and the Pacific Northwest Association announced Monday an agreement to merge.

The merged organization, which will operate as the Western Equipment Dealers Association, will represent more than 1,250 dealers in the United States and Canada.