Source:  Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE.COM, 7/28/10

National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President Steve Foglesong said the organization will work to correct any mistakes made with regard to alleged misuse of beef checkoff dollars and supports the development of written guidelines to ensure compliance.

A routine compliance review by the Cattlemen’s Beef Board, with the help of an independent accounting firm, showed inappropriate use of checkoff dollars, CBB said in a new release it distributed Tuesday morning. In addition to further investigating the matter, CBB said it would issue more detailed guidelines. 

"We agree with CBB’s accounting firm, Clifton Gunderson LLP, and with CBB that written and specific guidelines are needed for all checkoff contractors,” Foglesong said in a statement. “The accountant’s inability to determine compliance on select items does not mean non-compliance. Rather, it is an indication that written guidelines are needed to achieve compliance.”

Foglesong said NCBA takes compliance seriously, which is why it keeps separate bank accounts. He contended the group’s accounting and time keeping procedures are on par with or exceed most industries’ standards. In that system are more than 8,000 coding options for assigning time and expenses to help ensure accuracy."

When the National Cattlemen’s Association merged with the National Live Stock and Meat Board, NCBA became more than a policy organization. NCBA became the home for the Federation of State Beef Councils, and as such, the No. 1 champion for the beef checkoff,” Foglesong said. “Our employees log more than 200,000 hours annually building and protecting beef demand. Every hour is focused on delivering results that matter with a strong focus on being accountable to producers.”

NCBA said it will address the compliance review with the Federation, CBB and USDA, and provide a complete response to the accountant’s report to these and other stakeholders at this week’s Cattle Industry Summer Conference.

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