Health care advice from Ohio’s agricultural community
Hundreds of Ohio businesses and sole proprietors are raving about Ohio Farm Bureau’s Health Benefits plan with lower, predictable costs and easy enrollment and administration options.
Read MoreA two-year process culminates in December. Members will notice a change in dues, effective Dec. 1, 2022 as well as a change in member classes.
Members will notice some changes on their dues invoice for 2023. These membership changes will take effect Dec. 1, 2022, but the grassroots process to implement them goes back a couple of years and involved hundreds of members.
Delegates at the 2021 Ohio Farm Bureau Annual Meeting voted to adopt a series of code changes to keep Farm Bureau positioned for strength. The code changes were the culmination of a two-year process that involved county leaders, the state board of trustees and nearly 400 annual meeting delegates. This summer, county Farm Bureau members voted at their annual meetings to adopt changes to their county Code of Regulations to align with the state’s code.
The most significant upcoming changes are a dues increase and a change to one member class.
“Keeping Farm Bureau strong for the future so that we can continue to serve members requires us to continually analyze how we go about our work,” said Adam Sharp, Ohio Farm Bureau executive vice president. “Agriculture is changing, our relationship with partners is evolving, and the need to operate with efficiency is more important than ever. Ohio Farm Bureau is financially sound, but we knew we needed to take action for us to continue to be.”
The statewide average dues amount will be about $110 annually. Because dues rates vary by county, click here for your local dues rate. “Know that dues decisions are never taken lightly,” Sharp said. “Our leadership would not make the recommendation to raise dues unless it was necessary.”
The other code change is converging three member classes into one. The active, young active and community member classes will be combined. The Our Ohio Supporter non‐member class will be eliminated. A discounted membership rate of $40 for those ages 18‐24 remains.
The decision to move to one member class was primarily driven by the need to simplify membership for both marketing simplification and processing efficiency. “Be assured that voting and decision-making powers will still center on those who make their living from agriculture,” Sharp said. All elected leaders must be “agriculturalists” — defined as an individual who is directly impacted by the health of the agricultural industry, as determined by county Farm Bureaus.
Ohio Farm Bureau is committed to making sure members understand the value they receive for their membership and the process that is undertaken to review organizational priorities, services, governance and financial stability. As part of Farm Bureau’s commitment to member outreach, Sharp plans to visit with many county Farm Bureau boards around the state this year and next. He also will be hosting five county Farm Bureau president roundtable meetings in November across Ohio. In addition, your state board member is ready and willing to engage.
Here is a list of frequently asked questions about the dues increase, when it goes into effect and how it came about.
Questions or concerns about these upcoming changes can be emailed to [email protected].
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