Bill Would Regulate Grain Traders

Ronald Caldwell

Arkansas legislators are working to get a bill ready that would regulate grain traders, said state Sen. Ronald Caldwell, R-Wynne.

“We do think we have a bill that will help us identify everyone who is trading grain, cause them to be licensed and have a methodology in place that will allow farmers who are not getting paid on time to be able to report to the [Arkansas] Department of Agriculture,” he said.

The cost associated with the proposed legislation is being ironed out, Caldwell said.

Caldwell said he hopes to have the bill ready for the public by the end of the week, but more legislation is expected in upcoming sessions that will be designed to prevent another collapse like Turner Grain’s.

“We’re not going to get out of this hole in one bill,” Caldwell said. “We’re trying to produce a bill this session that will allow us to detect any wrongdoing of this magnitude way before it happens.”