COLUMBIA, Mo. – A circuit court in Cole County, Missouri, dismissed a lawsuit challenging a Missouri Dept. of Agriculture referendum on a beef checkoff tax clearing the way for Missouri cattle producers to vote on the assessment. Election ballots were scheduled to be mailed April 4.

The agency is proposing a $1 per head state beef checkoff tax. Beef producers already pay $1 per head to the National Beef checkoff program.

The Missouri Rural Crisis Center (MRCC), which challenged the referendum in court, plans to file another lawsuit after Missouri beef producers vote on the checkoff tax. The deadline to return ballots is April 15, and results of the vote will be announced April 25.