Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the County Fairs topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
County fair advocates describe repairs, education projects funded by AGRI and premium dollars
Summary
Representatives of Minnesota county fairs described how AGRI grants and statutorily administered premium funds support fair infrastructure and ag‑education exhibits; witnesses asked the committee to continue state support that reaches every county that applies.
Andrew Dewar, representing the Minnesota Federation of County Fairs, briefed the House Ag Finance and Policy Committee on how county agricultural societies operate Minnesota’s 87 county fairs and the state funding streams that support that work.
Dewar explained county ag societies are quasi‑government entities governed by Minnesota law (chapter 38) and that all 87 counties have a county ag society; some geographically large counties operate multiple fairs. He described three primary revenue sources for fairs: on‑site sales (admissions, grandstand, concessions), county assistance (varies by county), and two state funding streams administered with this committee’s jurisdiction: AGRI grants (roughly $1 million per year) and premium funds (roughly $474,000 statutorily appropriated and prorated by request).
Jen Penzenstadler, Chisago County Fair secretary, gave examples of AGRI-funded projects: cement repairs and accessible sidewalks, hand‑washing stations, building and electrical upgrades, ventilation and animal‑safety improvements, livestock pens and an agriculture education center ("Little Ag Ventures") used for public ag literacy and connecting consumers to local producers.
Why it matters: Dewar said the AGRI grant program is designed so accepted grant requests are distributed across counties, ensuring smaller fairs receive funding; premium funds subsidize show ribbons and lower costs of participation for youth and other exhibitors. Committee members asked about ownership of fairgrounds and property‑tax treatment; presenters said ownership varies (some fairgrounds owned by county ag societies, some by counties) and that the association would follow up with details.
Ending: No budget action was taken; fair advocates asked the committee to maintain and, where possible, continue AGRI and premium support to preserve rural ag education, lower barriers to participation and maintain fairground infrastructure.
