Election 2002: Ramsay, Combs face off in race for Texas Agriculture Commissioner
'A job that fits my experience, personality and abilities'

By LYNN MONTGOMERY | East Texas Edition

Ramsay

October 24, 2002 -- Early voting for the Nov. 5 election is under way, which leaves not many more campaigning days for those vying for positions.

The state agriculture commissioner position is one up for grabs and Democrat Tom Ramsay of Mount Vernon would like to overtake the reins from incumbent Susan Combs, a Republican.

Ramsay, who is finishing his term as District 2 State Representative, feels he has the background that is needed to become the next ag commissioner.

One key asset to being a good commissioner, according to Ramsay, is agriculture experience.

"I was born and raised in Mount Vernon. My dad was a farmer, but in the late '50s, he turned his farmland into grassland and raised cattle until his death four years ago at the age of 93. In fact when he died, he had 280 to 290 momma cows," Ramsay said.

After college graduation from Southern Methodist University and marriage, Ramsay with wife Laurie wanted to raise their kids in a rural setting and a small school. So, in the early '70s, the couple moved back to Mount Vernon where the couple still reside.

"Right after we moved back, I leased/purchased some land in Delta County and started farming. I remained there until 1998, mainly farming soybeans, but I also grew alfalfa and every other year I would plant corn," Ramsay explained.

In 1980, Ramsay put together a group and founded Franklin National Bank in Mount Vernon and he became chairman of the board. (Ramsay's banking experience is another of his assets for becoming the next ag commissioner, he offered.)

If elected to the position, Ramsay pointed out some of the changes he would work towards.

"In TDA (Texas Department of Agriculture), there are some loan programs that need to be streamlined and fixed and made assessable to young farmers," Ramsay said.

"There is a law in effect that allows TDA guaranteed loans to buy down interest rates and to make loans. There are so many documents to fill out. It takes now, under my opponent, 11 to 12 weeks to get an answer. You can't wait that long for an answer," Ramsay continued.

Ramsay's response on how to shorten the response time is to shorten the form length:

"An applicant just needs to fill out two or three pages. In that application would be income, what he owes, how much he is going to make, how much he does make, what his other debts are, and permission to check to see how he pays his bills," Ramsay said.

"I promise that the forms (producers) needed to fill out for TDA loans and grants will be greatly simplified, if I am elected ag commissioner," the representative added. "If you can read, you can fill out the form."

The candidate also stressed that "the program was set up not to give money to rich people but to get people to come back to the farm or stay on the farm. I know how to do that."

In 1992, Ramsay was elected to the Texas House of Representative, representing seven counties. He has served on the Ways and Means Committee and is currently Chairman of the County Affairs Committee. The County Affairs Committee is in charge of all laws affecting counties "If a county wants to change a law, it comes through county affairs."

Being a state representative has enabled Ramsay to learn "if there something in TDA or the ag commissioner needs to change or do, I know how to get it done through the Texas House and Senate."

There are things on the back burner right now, according to Ramsay, that should be on the front.

"There are about 60 laws or rules that have been written that affect the ag department. Ninety-eight percent of those rules have to do with the consumer," Ramsay stated, "have to do with weights and measures, scanners, food safety, quality of food. The current commissioner is more concerned with promotion."

Ramsay said he believes the job calls for protecting the safety of food, and he wants to reopen road stations to ensure food entering the state is safe from pests and pesticides.

"We no longer inspect fruits and vegetables that come into this state from Mexico. In Mexico, farmers can use DDT and other insecticides that we cannot use; that have been proven to be cancerous. I would reopen those inspection stations," Ramsay touted. "TDA is about protecting the consumer."

Another promise made by Ramsay was to "go back to using grant money for small, rural businesses. I was in the legislature when this bill was passed. There is no way you can justify that H-E-B is small and rural."

Small and rural means gross receipts must be less than $1 million a year, according to Ramsay.

Grant money has been given to businesses, according to Ramsay, who made contributions to Combs campaign.

Ramsay said he would make it clear that when given a contribution that it would give the contributor access. "It means I'm going to hear your side, but it does not mean I am going to do what you want."

The "you-scratch-my-back, I'll-scratch-yours" theory is affecting farmers and ranchers in another area ... water.

Ramsay was one of five representatives who appealed to the North East Texas Water Planning Group to change the proposed Marvin Nichols Reservoir in East Texas to a potential reservoir.

"If I were ag commissioner I would be yelling and screaming to our federal government about Mexico. I would be in Crawford or wherever to say 'hey, look we've got many things to do with Mexico. Let's stop doing all of them until they agree to deliver the water'," Ramsay said adamantly about the U.S./Mexico water war.

Ramsay said he is willing to stick his neck out to do whatever it takes to make agriculture in Texas work, including getting people back to the farm.

"I am going to do everything that I can so that if our kids or grandkids want to come back and farm, then they are able to do so," Ramsay said.

One step in enabling kids to stay on the farm is TDA loans and grants. Another is keeping agriculture in the classroom.

Ramsay values agriculture in the classroom and the FFA program which is apparent because in his downtown Mount Vernon office a wall calender that has a large group photo, from the 1950's era, reads "Tom Ramsay, FFA president."

"As ag commissioner, I will fight to keep ag classes and FFA in school. We have got to have these classes," Ramsay said.

So why run for the state's ag leader now?

"I wanted to run four years ago. Pete Patterson was also interested in running for ag commissioner. Pete and I talked several times and ultimately I decided it was the right thing for Pete to run.

"If I said to you, go to Austin and create a job that fits my experience and fits my personality and fits my abilities, but most important was a job that I wanted to do, it would be Texas Agriculture Commissioner," Ramsey explained.