14 Sep KARA joins coalition letter to congress to implement recommendations of the Presidential Emergency Board to prevent rail strike
Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association joined more than 100 other organizations in signing and sending a letter on Sept. 15 to congressional leaders requesting action be taken to avoid a rail strike. A copy of the letter is available to view below.
Although KARA and other groups prefer a resolution be reached by the negotiating parties, if an agreement can’t be made, the letter addressed to United States Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-California) and House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) urges congress to ensure a freight rail shutdown does not occur by implementing the Presidential Emergency Board’s recommendations in whole.
As this deadline approaches, there is no agreement yet in place. According to The Fertilizer Institute, Rail carriers announced Friday evening that shipments of fertilizer products, such as ammonia – a key fertilizer and building block for approximately three-fourths of all fertilizer – will start coming off rail networks as early as this Monday.
In a letter coordinated and sent by our affiliated national associations, the groups urged leaders of railroads and rail labor unions to remain at the negotiating table and commit to reaching an agreement by Thursday to avoid a nationwide rail shutdown. Congress could be called upon to settle differences in the event of an impasse in negotiations, but the hope is to avoid this potential outcome.
Below are two steps you can take during this negotiation process:
Reach out to your rail and labor contacts and implore them to stay at the negotiating table and continue working toward an agreement.
Call your lawmakers below and explain to them the the hardship agricultural facilities have already been experiencing with rail service disruptions, as well as the potential damages of a stoppage in the middle of fall harvest. Ask your elected officials to intervene immediately if railroads and labor fail to reach an agreement.