Cattle rancher and hay farmer Shane Otley of Harney County Farm Bureau was elected to serve a two-year term as Oregon Farm Bureau’s (OFB) third vice president.

Otley was voted into the position by the OFB House of Delegates, a grassroots body comprised of family farmers and ranchers representing county Farm Bureaus from across the state. The election took place on Dec. 6 during the 86th OFB annual meeting, which was held Dec. 4-6 in Salem.

“Since Shane joined the OFB board of directors in December 2013, the state board has benefited from his leadership, expertise, and perspective. Shane will do an excellent job as OFB’s third vice president, and we congratulate him on being elected to serve as a state officer,” said OFB President Sharon Waterman.

“I feel dedicating my time to Farm Bureau is very important because I’m a rancher and a farmer. Farm Bureau gives me a strong voice to advocate for Oregon agriculture as a whole in the political, regulatory, and legal arenas,” said Otley.

The third vice president coordinates OFB’s issue advisory committees, which are comprised of Farm Bureau members representing many types of agricultural commodities, to maximize their effectiveness and guide OFB staff in their advocacy work. The third vice president also assists the OFB president and OFB board of directors as needed.

“Being from Burns, I have very strong support from the ag community on the east side of Oregon. It’s an honor that Farm Bureau members from the rest of the state have the confidence in me to represent them at the state level,” he said.

Otley is a cattle rancher and alfalfa hay farmer based in Burns.