NEBRASKA /A.P. NEWS
CATTLEMEN MAY EXPERIENCE SLOWER RESPONSE FROM BRAND INSPECTORS
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Sep 19, 2007, 14:40

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Ranchers might be wise to prepare for a slow-down in response times from the 50 or so cattle inspectors in the western two-thirds of the state.

Steven Stanec is executive director of the Nebraska Brand Committee headquartered in Alliance. He says a new rule requiring inspectors to work a 40-hour week could reduce the number of hours they spend on-call -- time they are not paid for. The new rule follows an audit by State Auditor Mike Foley and a legal opinion by Attorney General Jon Bruning.

They concluded inspectors must work 40-hour weeks. Inspectors say they work much more than that during periods such as the upcoming cattle-buying season, but sometimes less during the summer.

Inspectors are important in the cattle business, because they must be on-hand to verify that the animals being sold actually belong to the person selling them.

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