House Republicans Trying Again to Enact Ag Worker Reform Legislation

House Republicans are trying again to enact ag worker reform legislation to deal with the longstanding problem of illegal seasonal farm labor in the U.S. But, the effort may be going nowhere in the Senate. House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte’s [GOOD-lat] Agricultural Workers Act would create a new non-immigrant worker visa program, aimed at providing a stable, legal and adequate …

National Council of Farmer Cooperatives Lists Farm Bill Priorities

The National Council of Farmer Cooperatives is urging Congress to finish the next farm bill on time. In releasing the organization’s farm bill priorities Tuesday, President and CEO Chuck Conner noted the “challenging price environment” farmers are dealing with in explaining the need for a timely farm bill. The council’s framework outlines eight general principles to be included in the …

Conaway on 2018 Farm Bill

The House Agriculture Committee has hosted various farm bill listening sessions across the country to get input from farmers and ranchers on what they would like to see in the next farm bill. Committee Chairman Mike Conaway says a draft of the 2018 Farm Bill could come up before the full House of Representatives yet this year, or early next. …

Stabenow to Shield Farm Bill from Cuts

Debbie Stabenow, the ranking member of the Senate Ag Committee, wants to defend the farm bill from possible budget cuts that could come during the budget reconciliation process that got started this week. Politico’s Morning Ag Report says she filed an amendment on Wednesday that’s intended to keep all farm bill programs away from any spending reductions from 2019 to …

Sunbelt Ag Expo Hosts Farm Bill Listening Session

Tuesday afternoon, as part of the opening day of the annual Sunbelt Ag Expo in Moultrie, Georgia, U.S. Representative Austin Scott (R-GA-08), along with U.S. Representatives Rick Allen (R-GA-12) and Al Lawson (D-FL-05), hosted a listening session entitled, “The Next Farm Bill: Conversations with Congress.” Southeast AgNet’s Randall Weiseman talked with Representative Scott about the Agriculture Committee’s efforts to put …

EPA Ending “Sue and Settle”

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt is touting a directive he signed this week to end the EPA’s so-called “sue and settle” strategy, a practice agriculture groups opposed. Pruitt issued an Agency-wide directive Monday to end the practice, a move he says means “the days of regulation through litigation are over.” Pruitt said the agency would “no longer go …

Florida Senate Agriculture Committee Meets to Discuss Hurricane Damage

The Florida Senate Agriculture Committee held a meeting this morning in Tallahassee to discuss damage from Hurricane Irma. Led by chairwoman Denise Grimsley, the committee listened to growers, and industry leaders from different agriculture sectors, as they explained the damage on their own farms and farms across the state. The meeting featured two sets of panels of fruit and vegetable …