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Following nearly a year of gathering membership input, the formation of a special task force and two membership votes, the Montana Stockgrowers Association members agreed to form a partnership agreement with the NCBA. The agreement between MSGA and NCBA will allow all MSGA members the option of including a membership with the national organization as part of their in-state dues. However, the combined membership between MSGA and NCBA is optional to all members. The purpose of the partnership, as developed by the MSGA task force, is to strengthen Montana's and cow/calf producers' influence in the national organization. "We are confident this new partnership will mean a stronger voice for the cow/calf producer in Montana, which has been a long-standing goal of Montana producers," says Bill Garrison, MSGA president. "By offering a combined membership between the state and national organizations to all those members interested, we hope to have a stronger voting block when it comes to critical policy issues addressed at the national level," he said. The partnership agreement, which will be effective January 1, 2001, will allow MSGA members to opt in or opt out of a membership within NCBA. For all members opting to join, MSGA will remit $60 in their names to the national office, and they will receive all benefits of membership. Dues will no longer be paid by a member directly to NCBA. "The decision to form a partnership between MSGA and NCBA was not made without careful consideration and nearly a year's worth of membership input," says Garrison. "What members told us was that it is critical we as an industry speak with a unified voice through NCBA, and participate from within to make our voice heard," Garrison says. According to NCBA's Vice President of Association Services, Marvin Kokes, 14 state associations have similar agreements. "It provides greater business efficiency for both associations to handle both dues at once," he says. "It streamlines the process, and allows both associations to focus their efforts more on state and national issues while serving the growing membership collectively." |
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