National Cattlemen's Beef Association - Financial Background

Financial Background

The National Cattlemen's Beef Association is funded partially by membership dues and partially through the Beef Checkoff which imposes a mandatory assessment each time a head of cattle is sold This tax, which was authorized by Congress in the Beef Promotion and Research Act of 1985, brings in around $85 million a year, of which the NCBA receives roughly $55 million. The constitutionality of the mandatory assessment was called into question with the hearing of the Supreme Court of the United States case Johanns v. Livestock Marketing Assn., in which the justices ruled in favor of the tax in a 6-3 decision.