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 Governor Mary Fallin presented a wide ranging set of ideas and budget specifics in her 2012 State of the State address, which served as the official kickoff for the 2012 Legislative session yesterday.

Here's a listing of links that will navigate you around the Governor's Proposals:

A full text of the governor's speech can be read by clicking here.

A PDF of the governor's budget is available by clicking here. In reviwing the budget- we see most state agencies, including the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture and the Conservation Commission as having a flat budget in FY2013 versus the current budget year.

Drought Gradually Slipping Away as La Nina Ending- Art Douglas Audio from Cattlefax Outlook

Drought has hung on in a lot of the state of Oklahoma as last week's Drought Monitor showed that 66% of Oklahoma was still in a moderate to exceptional drought. That number could shrink further. as soaking rains hit across northwestern and north central Oklahoma at the end of last week- many locations receiving two to three inches of rainfall. 

Worries about being dry this spring continues to be the coffee shop talk in many western counties. However, Dr. Art Douglas, retired professor from Creighton University, predicted this past Friday at the 2012 Cattlefax Market Outlook Conferece (that is a regular part of the annual Cattle Industry Convention) that La Nina is rapidly winding down- and in fact he sees the momentum picking up for an El Nino event later this year.

That could push the jet stream further south and keep rain making systems rolling across Oklahoma and Texas often enough to push back these last stubborn areas of drought in both Oklahoma and Texas.

We have maps showing the last thirty days of rainfall in the state- the most recent Drought Monitor as well as the full audio presentation from Dr. Douglas on our website- waiting for you to check out. Click here to jump to that page to get Dr. Douglas' full explanation of La Nina ending and El Nino looming.

Feeder Cattle Numbers Shrinking- Feedlot Inventories to Follow Suit

Extension Livestock Market Economist Dr. Derrell Peel of Oklahoma State University says that the market may be running out of tricks to keep the pipeline full of feeder cattle.

According to Dr. Peel. one important issue is the implication for feeder cattle supply in 2012. The January 1 estimate of feeder cattle outside of feedlots is 25.85 million head, down 1.06 million head (3.9 percent) from one year ago. Remember that the feeder supply last year was down 2.9 percent from 2010. In total, the U.S. feeder cattle supply has dropped 1.85 million head or 6.7 percent in the past two years. However, the January 1, 2012 Cattle on Feed inventory was 14.12 million head, up nearly one percent from the previous year. Moreover, the feedlot inventory on January 1, 2011 was up 2.7 percent from 2010. The point is that feedlots have done a remarkable job of maintaining feedlot inventories but only at the expense of future feeder cattle supplies. It seems less and less likely that this can continue. 

Dr. Peel drills deeper on this subject in this week's analysis that comes from the weekly electronic newsletter- Cow Calf Corner. Click here to read his full take on this aspect of our current 2012 situation in the US Beef Cattle Marketplace.

Be Watching for NASS Survey on Planting Intentions Later in February 

How will the uncertain economy affect U.S. farmer's planting intentions in 2012? How many acres of corn do farmers intend to plant this growing season? The March Agricultural Survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will survey 82,000 U.S. farmers in March 2012 to ask such questions about farmers' plans for the 2012 season.


"Each year, the agricultural industry watches for the results of the March Agricultural Survey, which provides the first official estimates of U.S. farmers' planting intentions for 2012," said Wilbert Hundl, director of the NASS Oklahoma Field Office.


NASS will mail the survey questionnaire in late February, asking producers to provide information about the types of crops they intend to plant in 2012, how many acres they intend to plant, and the amounts of grain and oilseed they store on their farms. NASS encourages producers to respond via the Internet but also welcomes mail or fax responses and offers non-responding producers the opportunity for a telephone or personal interview. 

Click here for more details of this survey that will be landing out in farm country later this month.   

Case IH Launches Field of Deals Sweepstakes

As part of its Field of Deals sales event, Case IH is sponsoring a sweepstakes where one lucky grand prize winner will receive a 2012 Ram truck, plus free fuel for one year. Case IH customers and prospects are encouraged to visit their local Case IH dealer and enter for a chance to win.

We had the chance to talk with Scott Rasch, Director of Public Relations for Case, about the Field of Deals promotion this past week in the Trade Show at the Cattle Industry Convention and Trade Show in Nashville.

Click here to jump over to our webstory for more on the deals available- and a chance to hear our conversation with Scott Rasch who offers a lot of the details about how you can save- and how you can register to be in the running for that brand new Dodge RAM truck.

Cash Cattle Market Finished Lower This Past Week- Our Weekly Audio Analysis with Ed Czerwin

This past week we saw $1 to $2 lower cash cattle trade both on live and dressed deals, again with a relatively low volume of sales. The weekly boxed beef trade had the choice cuts lower also. Ed Czerwin with the USDA Market News Office in Amarillo, Texas has the details in his weekly analysis available on Monday afternoons.

Click here to jump to our webpage and your chance to take a listen to Ed's detailed look at the boxed beef trade, far cattle and more.

Kay-Noble Counties Women in Ag Conference Set for This Thursday

Kay and Noble County Conservation Districts and their respective Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and Farm Service Agencies (FSA) are joining together with the USDA Risk Management Agency to hold their fifth Women in Agriculture Conference this coming Thursday, February 9, 2012 from 8:30am to 3:00pm in the Renfro Center on the Northern Oklahoma College campus in Tonkawa. The theme will be "Denim and Lace." The conference will recognize the many roles that women play in today's agricultural community and provide these women with management skills that are needed to make informed business and family decisions.

The folks who run this conference have asked me to be their keynote speaker that morning- and we will be offering some ideas about how to best tell agriculture's story. We look forward to seeing many of you this coming Thursday morning in Tonkawa.

More details about the program can be had by clicking here.