Tester awarded national Friend of the Farm Bureau from AFBF

Press release

Sen. Jon Tester announced Friday that he was awarded the Friend of the Farm Bureau Award from the American Farm Bureau Federation, one of the country's largest agricultural organizations.

"I'm proud to take my cues from Montana's farmers and ranchers – and I would like to thank the Montana Farm Bureau for its work advocating on behalf of our states number one industry, agriculture. Whether it's by working to support irrigators impacted by the catastrophic siphon failure on the St. Mary Canal, push back against burdensome reporting requirements that don't work for farmers and ranchers, kill the proposed stepped up basis tax proposal that would have negatively impacted families' ability to pass their farm or ranch from one generation to the next, or craft a farm bill that keeps our family farms top of mind, I'll never stop fighting for Montana ag producers in Congress," Tester said in a press release. "As the Senate's only working dirt farmer, I'm honored to receive this award and will continue our work to hold the government accountable and create a level playing field for Montana's agricultural producers."

Tester is up for re-election and faces Republican Tim Sheehy in the general election.

His release said Tester has long been Montana's leading champion for family farmers and ranchers. Tester has led the charge to push the Securities Exchange Commission to avoid taking any action that would lead to burdensome reporting requirements for family farmers and ranchers who are part of a supply chain for a publicly traded company as a part of its recently proposed "climate disclosure rule."

After a major siphon burst on the Milk River Project near Babb earlier this year, Tester has fought tirelessly to support irrigators on the Milk River, his release said. Earlier last week, he pressed the Biden Administration to ensure farmers and ranchers impacted by the siphon failure are eligible for assistance through the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP).

He also secured federal funding for the Milk River Project in the Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies bill, and, earlier this year, he announced that a more than $88 million contract was awarded to Montana-based NW Construction to complete the St. Mary Diversion Dam Replacement project. The contract is part of the up to $100 million Tester secured for the Milk River Project through his bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which he negotiated and helped pass into law.

Tester stood up and defeated a proposal from President Biden and Democratic senators to change stepped-up basis tax provisions that would have negatively impacted a families' ability to keep running a farm, ranch, or small business.