Legislative Session 2021: What’s the Message?

Three experienced Tallahassee hands shared their insights on communicating with policy makers in Tallahassee during an ACF-sponsored webinar on April 5.

Adam Basford of the Florida Farm Bureau Federation, Amanda Bevis of the Florida Ag Coalition and Victoria Price of UF/IFAS updated us on what they do in Tallahassee and how we can help.

There were a lot of takeaways from the panel. Here are a few things they ask us to do as ag communicators:

• Share farmers’ or association members’ stories about how public policy affects them with Amanda at FFBF. Third-party stories connect with lawmakers and their staff, and these men and women can also be sources to whom our communicators can refer media inquiries on specific issues.
• Visit floridaagcoalition.com.
• Subscribe to regular legislative session updates from the Ag Coalition, FYIFAS and Florida Farm Bureau’s AgWatch.
• Use the graphics under the Ag Coalition’s “Take Action” tab.
• Follow @FLAgCoalition @IFASGovAffairs & @FFBagWatch.
• Tag lawmakers in your social media posts—see the list when you follow @IFASGovAffairs.
• Send a letter in support of Right to Farm legislation and/or the UF/IFAS budget to a lawmaker.
• Use the hashtags #FLRighttoFarm #AIinAgriculture.
• Follow up with email questions to Basford@ffbf.org, amanda@redhillsstrategies.com, and v.price@ufl.edu.