§ 25-38-201 - Legislative findings.

25-38-201. Legislative findings.

The General Assembly finds that:

(1) Agriculture accounts for thirteen billion dollars ($13,000,000,000) or one-fifth (1/5) of the gross state product of Arkansas;

(2) Two hundred ninety-one thousand (291,000) Arkansas jobs directly involve or operate in support of agriculture;

(3) Agriculture and agriculture-related jobs account for twenty-three percent (23%) of all employment in Arkansas;

(4) Responsibility for supporting agriculture in Arkansas is spread across six (6) state agencies;

(5) Marketing of the agricultural products of Arkansas is made extremely difficult by the diffusion of responsibility across six (6) state agencies; and

(6) Marketing of the agricultural products of Arkansas would be vastly improved if a central office were devoted to creating, publicizing, and sustaining an information network for Arkansas farmers and ranchers.