Facing backlash, Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller explains steep fee hikes
Called before a state Senate committee to explain steep fee increases that caught businesses and politicians by surprise, Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller insisted Tuesday that the hikes were justified and essential to protecting consumers.
Miller’s fee proposal, set to take effect Jan. 1, has been harshly criticized as an end run around the Legislature — an attempt to boost his agency’s budget after lawmakers declined to provide additional money earlier this year.
But Miller said the need for higher fees wasn’t fully known until after the legislative session ended in June, when his agency began a systematic study of programs — including food inspections and audits testing the accuracy of grocery store scales — revealing that the current fees didn’t pay for the programs as required by law.
“This is very difficult for me. It keeps me up at night,” Miller said during the Capitol hearing. “I’m a fiscal hawk. The last thing I want to do is raise anybody’s fees, but I’m out of options here.”
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