East Central Reporter

Congresswoman Mary Miller meets the Farm Bureau despite it not backing her in the primary and criticism that it is endorsing non-farmers over farmers.

The Cass-Morgan Farm Bureau also acknowledged having a "great visit with Congresswoman Mary Miller this afternoon discussing agriculture, national issues and more." Miller is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Illinois' 15th Congressional District. 

"I had such a great time meeting with the Cass-Morgan Farm Bureau this week. I appreciated the chance to discuss the upcoming Farm Bill and to meet with fellow farmers here in Central Illinois."

The Illinois Farm Bureau strongly opposed the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, which it fears would create eminent domain issues for farmers. Despite this, the Bureau still endorsed 20 legislators who voted for the bill. In a Capitol Report from State Sen. Craig Wilcox, he talks about new proposed legislation from State Senator Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) to ensure energy production in Illinois is adequate and that would combat rolling blackouts statewide. SB 4215 would "repeal the forced 2045 closure date for coal and natural gas power plants that was implemented under Gov. JB Pritzker’s Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) of 2021." 

It would also allow companies to build new gas peaker plants without the fear of a state-mandated shutdown. SB 4216 would reappropriate $10 million from "the fees assessed to fund clean technology for retrofitting coal and natural gas plants with carbon capturing technology." It would also create the Power Grid Task Force to study the effects of state laws on energy prices and the power grid and ways to improve the power supply mix in the state. Finally, SB 4217 would "eliminate red tape at the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that has been preventing new power plants from coming online in a timely manner by expediting the state permitting process."

According to political insiders, Kevin Semlow, Director of State Legislation at the Illinois Farm Bureau, is behind the Bureau's endorsements. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Political Science from Illinois State University. According to his LinkedIn profile, he has been with the Illinois Farm Bureau for over 26 years. He has been in his current role for over 18 years in which he works in "planning, implementing and evaluating the state legislative program, state finance issues and state and local political campaigns." Semlow is also a legislative liaison to the General Assembly and state agencies, and he assists county farm bureaus regarding legislative matters. He is also the Secretary and Administrator of the Illinois Farm Bureau ACTIVATOR which is their political action committee (PAC) for nearly 19 years. In that role, he works on "developing and implementing political and grassroots engagement strategies for endorsed candidates for elected office through membership political involvement funds." He also works with local farm bureaus and political candidates on political matters.

The Illinois Farm Bureau's endorsement list includes 30 politicians who support Amendment 1, which would give public sector unions unprecedented power in the state. Some of these endorsements include Democratic Congresswoman Robin Kelly, who recently chaired the Illinois Democratic Party and State Rep. Lance Yednock (D-76).