*Photo above Northern Plains Resource Council members gather for area water well monitoring
Rein in unchecked corporate greed and safeguard the power of workers, small businesses, and family farmers to build a good life
Over the last forty years, the legal and policy structures that protect people from corporate abuse and limit corporate power have been systematically dismantled or ignored. That has had a devastating impact on rural America. Workers, especially in the agriculture sector, can be exploited by suppressed wages and exposure to dangerous conditions. Family farmers and ranchers in many areas have been forced by economic conditions to sell their farms, leading to the consolidation of land ownership. Main street businesses have been shuttered in small towns across America. This consolidation has allowed the proliferation of giant corporations that pollute communities with impunity. For the sake of our economy and democracy, we need to rebalance economic and political power.
Issue Priorities
Limit Corporate Power
Rural residents face higher consumer prices, lower producer prices, and less choice.
Hold Polluters Accountable
Giant corporations pollute rural communities, harming our health and damaging our lands, water, and air.
Strengthen Food Labeling Requirements
Multinational corporations use lax labeling requirements to manipulate and mislead consumers.
Empower Workers
Rural workers earn less, are less likely to have benefits, and are more likely to be injured on the job.
Create Good Jobs and Strong Economies
Small farms closed or consolidated; manufacturers moved overseas; and mining, timber, and other extractive industries dried up.
Reform Mandatory Checkoff Programs for Commodities
Producers of most commodities are required to pay a fee called a checkoff to the national and state commodity boards.