Governor Nixon says a deer is not a cow.

“Just try to milk one,” he tells a meeting of conservationists, as he outlines the reasons he has vetoed a bill that would have had the Department of Agriculture regulate deer raised in captivity.

Nixon says it is one of a string of special interest bills passed in the closing hours of the legislative session. He maintains it violates the state constitution, which has given the Department of Conservation power to manage the state’s deer herd.

Nixon has blasted the captive cervid bill as being part of an ill-conceived package of legislation that would be devastating to numerous state programs because most of the bills focus on reducing sales taxes. If his vetoes are overturned, he says, the Conservation Department will lost $12.3 million a year. He says the sales tax reductions also would hurt efforts now financed by a special sales tax for state parks and for soil and water conservation.

He has called on conservationists to join local government officials and others who would be hurt by loss of sales tax income to pressure lawmakers to uphold his vetoes.

Agricultural interests have vowed to pressure lawmakers to override the vetoes in September.

Watch Nixon list the reasons for his veto of the omnibus farm bill:

 

Hear Nixon discuss the tax cuts and the deer bill  (more detail, better audio):

AUDIO: Nixon explains veto 7:24