August 23, 2019
Voluntary water agreements remain undecided in “Trump insurance” bill
If passed next month, Senate Bill 1 will enshrine the Endangered Species Act (ESA) as it was prior to 2017 into California code, through the state’s own version of the ESA. It is yet to be decided what that would mean for water allocations to farmers from the federally operated Central Valley Project.
Why it’s an issue: The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation decides allocations based on biological opinions. That scientific review looks to the ESA to dictate how much water is needed to support endangered fish populations in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta watershed.
Trump’s opinions: The Trump administration promised to release in July an update to the biological opinions, signaling that it would favor more flows to the Central Valley. The LA Times reports the review instead showed the changes would harm several species and the bureau had suppressed the document.
Fanning the flames: The administration has also announced changes to ESA rules, which has added more fuel to the SB 1 arguments. “This is the type of federal action this bill seeks to prevent from impacting the state,” writes Senator Toni Atkins of San Diego in the latest analysis of her bill.
Voluntary Agreements: At issue now is whether California’s version of the ESA would apply to the federal water project. If so, it could cancel out more than a year's worth of challenging negotiations among stakeholders, including farmers and environmental groups, to find a regulatory solution to the flows issue that wouldn’t involve courts. Governor Newsom also favors this approach.
Financial impact: The Legislative Analyst’s Office estimates implementing SB 1 would cost at least $30 million to the Air Resources Board and at least $6 million to the Department of Fish and Wildlife. It would also lead to “significant costs” for the State Water Board and for the Department of Justice, which would see a deluge of subsequent litigation.
Next: SB 1 is sitting in the Appropriations Committee, which has until the end of next week to either pass the bill or let it quietly die. Atkins has a favorable reputation for working with the ag community to negotiate amendments on past bills. Her team is likely trying to untangle the complex web of interests now.
Worth noting: The bill now includes a sunset date for the provisions: January 20, 2025. That would be the day a new president is sworn into office, if President Trump has a second term.
Sen. Bernie Sanders at a rally in Sacramento Thursday: "It is the most sweeping climate change program in the history of this country."
Democrats in bidding war on rural plans
Sen. Bernie Sanders is the latest Democratic presidential candidate to come out with detailed proposals on agriculture and rural policy, and his are probably the most aggressive of all. Sanders released a $16 trillion plan Thursday to carry out the Green New Deal that includes $410 billion in agriculture spending alone.
The ag proposals include a $160 billion subsidy program for farmers who increase soil carbon levels. That’s a concept that is common across the plans Democrats have proposed.
But Sanders is seeking to remake much of the U.S. economy, and that includes agriculture. He wants to push more farmers into organic farming, make it harder for large livestock farms to operate - and even subsidize urban dwellers to turn their yards into farmettes.
Keep in mind: Sanders’ plan and others like it aren’t aimed so much at farmers as they are young voters in the Democratic base for whom climate change is a top issue.
Peterson: Dems too far left for rural voters
House Agriculture Chairman Collin Peterson, D-Minn., says Trump’s support among farmers appears to be softening. But Sanders and other Democratic candidates are running too far to the left to appeal to rural voters, Peterson toldAgri-Pulse’s Sara Wyant during a stop in Rep. Vicky Hartzler’s Missouri district Thursday.
“That’s what Trump’s big advantage is - all the Democrats. They might re-elect him if they keep all this up. … There are no Democrats like me left,” Peterson said.
NFU leader likes candidates’ attention
The president of the National Farmers Union, Roger Johnson, says he’s never seen the level of detail that the Democratic presidential candidates are offering in their ag proposals this year.
“Agriculture is getting a lot more attention than it has in any presidential campaign I can remember, in my lifetime. That’s a good thing,” said Johnson, a former Democratic ag commissioner in North Dakota.
He also credits the candidates for “trying to bring the climate debate into the agriculture space.”
But, but, but: Don’t underestimate how touchy the climate issue could be in rural areas. Before NFU adopted a climate resolution at its annual meeting this year, the term “Green New Deal” was purposely omitted. Delegates thought it was too controversial.
Johnson: More trade aid to come
Johnson worries that the Trump administration’s successive trade aid packages will ultimately undermine congressional support for farm programs – both because of the size of individual payments and the size of the spending overall.
Even so, Johnson doesn’t think the spending will continue beyond 2020, when Trump is up for re-election. “I’d be willing to bet you we’re going to have another one next year. … I bet the chances of next year are a hell of a lot higher than they are the year after.”
He notes that Congress barred such use of USDA’s CCC authority after the Obama administration spent far less money ahead of the 2010 mid-terms. That restriction stayed in place until last year.
WOTUS ruling adds new wrinkle to rewrite
A Georgia federal judge’s ruling should give a boost to the Trump administration’s ongoing effort to rewrite the Obama administration's "waters of the U.S." rule.
U.S. District Judge Lisa Godbey Wood found the 2015 rule violated the Clean Water Act by categorically making interstate waters jurisdictional and using overly broad definitions for "tributaries" and waters adjacent to them.
Ellen Steen, general counsel at the American Farm Bureau Federation, said Wood "found fault with the EPA’s interpretation of some of the most basic principles of the CWA, most importantly which waters the federal government may regulate, and which waters must be left to states and municipalities.”
On the other hand, National Wildlife Federation attorney Jim Murphy noted the judge used former Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy's "significant nexus" test to analyze the legality of the rule. EPA and the Corps are instead trying to base their proposed changes on late Justice Antonin Scalia's narrower reading of the Clean Water Act.
What's next: A rule officially repealing the 2015 rule is expected out soon, and EPA and the Corps are hoping to get their replacement rule out by the end of the year.
Timing for next China talks still unclear
Chinese officials won’t say whether they will send negotiators back to Washington next month to continue trade talks.
Gao Feng, a spokesman for China’s Commerce Ministry, said Thursday that his country hopes the U.S. will back away from imposing a new round of tariffs on Sept. 1. Gao also reiterated China’s threat to retaliate against the U.S.
“When there are new tariffs imposed by the U.S., China will have to take some countermeasures,” he said.
White House drops plan to cut aid programs
Trump’s decision not to cancel $4 billion in unspent foreign aid programs has removed a potential landmine in congressional budget deliberations this fall.
“It is a good thing that President Trump has backed off his rescission threat. The power of the purse is one of Congress’s most fundamental responsibilities,” said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. “I hope he has learned the lesson not to play games with the budget.”
He said it:
“The equipment already exists. The packaging exists. The products exist. And all we need to do is to push industry to be more sustainable.” - Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica, talking about his bill, SB 54, to mandate a 75% reduction in plastics, including food processing.
Ben Nuelle, Spencer Chase, Bill Tomson and Steve Davies contributed to this report.
Comments? Questions? Tips? Email comments to brad@agri-pulse.com.
Agri-Pulse Daybreak West is brought to you by FMC.
August 22, 2019
Water quality standards expanded for North Coast dairies
Following a two-year stakeholder process, the North Coast Regional Water Board approved measures last week to expand the waste discharge requirements for dairies. This adds to an existing 2012 order for regulating water quality. At that time, CDFA had provided $100,000 in grants to help operations transition; no funds are available for the added measures.
Nutrient plans: Among the new permit conditions, dairies will have to submit nutrient management plans to the board. Dairy operators were concerned they would be publicly accountable for the plans, which would be forward-looking estimates and not exact measurements.
Dairy operator Jana McClelland had other fears: “Extreme activists will use these public documents about our personal, proprietary business to plan attacks on our operation,” she wrote in a comment.
Water sampling: Others said the increased surface water sampling for bacteria would raise the cost of compliance by 300%. One dairy association claimed the lab work alone would cost $1,500.
Groundwater plan: UC ANR advisors called the required work plan for groundwater monitoring excessive. Paul Souza of Western United Dairymen said it would “likely put a dairy out of business.”
Hurting dairies: UC Davis Cooperative Extension Specialist Deanne Meyer said this order may be “demoralizing” for dairies, who have “really stepped up to the plate” following the 2012 order.
She said: "If I'm a dairyman, I would wonder: 'I haven't heard that anything I've been doing is bad for all these years, and all of the sudden I'm now asked to do a bunch more stuff."
In the mail: USDA’s trade-aid checks
USDA has started delivering payments under the 2019 Market Facilitation Program. Farm Service Agency Administrator Richard Fordyce tells Agri-Pulseabout 200,000 farmers so far have applied for the program, which provides payments based on the department’s county-by-county assessments of trade damage.
Nearly 600,000 farmers signed up for the 2018 version of MFP, so enrollment in MFP 2.0 is certain to grow substantially before the Dec. 6 signup deadline.
Fordyce acknowledged some processing delays in the case of growers who are farming land they didn’t rent or own in 2018. Those applications require additional verification.
What’s next: Fordyce says FSA will announce the 2018-2019 disaster assistance program in the “next few weeks.” He says aspects of the program could be rolled out in a staggered fashion. Two provisions of the program – cover for stored grain that was flooded, and supplemental prevent plant payments – are new this year.
Administration sued over new ESA rules
Environmental groups are suing the Trump administration over new Endangered Species Act rules that they say weaken protections for threatened and endangered wildlife.
Federal wildlife agencies recently adopted regulations making broad changes to the ESA that include no longer granting threatened species the same protection as endangered species and making it less likely that suitable habitat not currently unoccupied by a species would be designated as critical.
The plaintiffs, who include Natural Resources Defense Council and Defenders of Wildlife, filed their lawsuit in the Northern District of California.
He said it:
“The decisions that we make in California hurt California businesses and also push that pollution to other places that don’t have those rules.” – Senator Brian Dahle, during a legislative hearing on a joint resolution opposing federal clean air rollbacks.
Dahle said to meet the state’s clean air standards, he had to spend $18,000 to retrofit a personal vehicle he also used in his trucking business.
Read the Agri-Pulse interview with Sen. Dahle.
On that note: New diesel requirements take effect in January that could lead to rejections for vehicle registrations for some truck owners, according toCalifornia Farm Bureau Policy Advocate Noel Cremers.
Ben Nuelle, Steve Davies and Bill Tomson contributed to this report.
August 21, 2019
Online delivery may change how produce is grown
More shoppers are buying groceries online. The trend has risen from 16% of shoppers in 2016 to 28% last year, according to Vonnie Estes of the Produce Marketing Association. She also pointed out that Amazon has seen a 59% increase year-over-year for its grocery delivery business.
Estes added that “this will continue to grow and impact what and how we grow,” as well as the varieties farmers choose.
Packaging: One PMA member worked with a company that needed the broccoli to be a certain size to fit in its meal kit boxes. So the grower changed varieties. Motorbike delivery services in Asia are taking on similar practices.
Tell your story: Estes also said consumers want to know the food’s story, such as the farmer who grew it and how and where it was grown. She was excited to say that “people are starting to have a connection to where their food comes from.”
Estes was speaking at a recent innovation summit hosted by Bayer at its Woodland research campus.
Trump: Strap in for more trade war pain
President Donald Trump is warning that there will be more pain from the trade war with China until the Chinese agree to an acceptable deal.
Whether the trade war is "good for our country or bad for our country short term – long term, it’s imperative that somebody does this …” Trump told reporters Tuesday. He insisted he’s not worried that the disruption will lead to a recession.
“China wants to make a deal and that’s good, but it has to be a fair deal to us. It can’t be a deal that’s not fair to us. This is something that has to be done,” he said.
As for his decision to delay until Dec. 15 some new tariffs on China to help out companies like Apple, Trump stressed that was temporary and suggested the iPhone maker should get out of China. “If I didn’t help them, they’d have a very big problem,” Trump said.
Japan trade deal coming soon, Grassley says
Negotiations between the U.S. and Japan are taking place under the radar and should produce an agreement over the next two months, says Senate Finance Chairman Chuck Grassley.
Grassley and others have said they expect the two countries to first produce a deal in which Japan would lower tariffs on U.S. farm goods that are finding it harder to compete with exporters in the European Union and other Pacific Rim countries that already have trade deals with Japan.
Trump taking longer look at aid cuts
The White House has delayed release of a package of budget rescissions that was expected to total $4 billion and include unspent funding for food aid and international ag development. The Office of Budget and Management was expected to issue the list of cuts Tuesday, but Trump indicated to reporters that it could be several days yet. “We’re talking to Republicans and Democrats about it,” he said.
Why it matters: Once the list is released the targeted funds would be frozen for 45 days – until well after the agencies’ authority for spending the money expires Sept. 30.
Cover crop in California. (USDA photo)
USDA: Case studies show conservation benefits
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service has issued a series of case studies that the agency says show cover crops, compost applications and other practices can increase farm profits.
The four case studies, carried out with American Farmland Trust, include a corn and soybean operation run by Eric Niemeyer in Ohio. Niemeyer, a first-generation farmer, went no-till, started planting cover crops and also switched to variable rate fertilizer application technology. Since that time his corn yields have increased from 165 to 195 bushels per acre and his soybean yield has risen from 45 to 65 bushels. Despite the increased cost from cover crops, he has increased his net annual revenue by $38 an acre, according to the study.
A second study involved an almond orchard in California that Ralf Sauter took over 14 years ago. He has increased his yield by 20% in part by using compost as a nutrient source and also by relying on conservation cover to help control mites. He’s increased his net revenue by $657 an acre or $76,155 a year.
Enviros challenge expanded use of bee-toxic pesticide
EPA expanded the use of sulfoxaflor to crops such as soybeans, squash, cotton, strawberries and citrus without “substantial evidence” to support its decision, as required by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, two environmental groups say in a lawsuit filed in the 9th US. Circuit Court of Appeals.
EPA said in its July registration decision that the insecticide is “highly toxic” to bees and other pollinating insects, but the agency concluded that if the chemical is applied according to the label “there will be no unreasonable adverse effects to honey bees."
The environmental groups say EPA failed to consider the impact of the chemical, sold as Transform and Closer, on more than 4,000 species of native bees.
USDA adds paperless payment option for loans
The Farm Service Agency hopes a new electronic payment option will make it easier for producers to pay farm loans and other administrative fees. Producers are now able to use debit cards or automated clearing house debit payments. Prior to the paperless option, only cash, check, money orders and wires were accepted.
Tuesday’s announcement is the first of a multi-phased roll-out of new payment options. Eventually, payment flexibility will be extended to Dairy Margin Coverage administrative fees and premiums and Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program fees, among others.
She said it:
“We’re the only ones who are going to have to put the big fat label on.” - Vonnie Estes, Vice President of Technology for the Produce Marketing Association. Estes was talking about GMO labeling for the produce industry. She said the percentage of GMOs in other commodity types, like corn and soy, is below the threshold for requiring the label.
Bill Tomson, Steve Davies, Spencer Chase and Ben Nuelle contribute to this report.
Comments? Questions? Tips? Email comments to brad@agri-pulse.com.
Agri-Pulse Daybreak West is brought to you by FMC.
August 20, 2019
Fish and Game to consider mountain lions as endangered species
The California Fish and Game Commission will be considering a petition to list mountain lions as protected under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). Ag groups contend this will leave livestock vulnerable to unchecked predation. The commission received the petition in a meeting earlier this month.
Protecting livestock: In the meeting, Kirk Wilbur of the California Cattlemen’s Association said the move would go against Prop 117. Voters approved the ballot initiative protecting mountain lions in 1990. Subsequent amendmentsallowed the take of mountain lions when they pose a threat to livestock.
Noel Cremers of the California Farm Bureau clarified that those petitions are only issued after the Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has determined that a mountain lion has already killed livestock or pets.
Focused impacts: Cremers said: “Often folks will come up and testify that predator loss to livestock is a very small percentage of the overall numbers of livestock lost.” Yet those numbers are concentrated among a small number of farms and ranches that see most of the predation impacts, she said.
SoCal’s lions: Two environmental groups, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Mountain Lion Foundation, submitted the petition. The proponents believe that the listing “is the only chance for survival” of the Southern California and Central Coast mountain lion groups.
Next: The commission will not consider arguments until after CDFW has conducted a review. That will likely be completed in December and the commission will take up the full debate in its February meeting.
Kangaroo rat: The commission also voted to list the San Bernardino kangaroo rat as endangered. This smaller subspecies of kangaroo rat inhabits regions that have largely been developed into urban communities, some of which were once farms.
Striped bass: In December, the commission will vote on a petition to update its delta fisheries and striped bass policies. The Coalition for a Sustainable Delta, which advocates for Central Valley agricultural interests, said the controversial 1996 policy on striped bass is long overdue for “a science-based update.”
Coalition spokesperson Michael Boccadoro received jeers from the audience while testifying at the recent meeting. Environmentalists, however, received broad applause when calling the coalition “a conspiracy” by billionaire Stewart Resnick. He runs the Wonderful Company, which farms, among others, almonds, pistachios, winegrapes and citrus in the San Joaquin Valley. Sportfishing interests are also opposed to the petition.
Adjusting the two policies could result in more flows from the delta to Central and Southern California through the state and federal water projects.
The Tipton kangaroo rat (USFWS)
USDA expands citrus greening quarantine areas
The expanded quarantine includes parts of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, as well as parts of Louisiana and Texas. The disease is spread by the Asian citrus psyllid and many of the detections come from backyard trees in Southern California.
The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is in parallel with CDFA’s expanded quarantine that began in July.
Aid groups worry over possible cuts
Feed the Future research programs at major land-grant universities around the country could be at risk as the White House considers canceling up to $4 billion in unspent foreign aid funding at the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development
The White House budget office has been preparing a list of rescissions that is expected to be released as soon as today, setting up a fight with Congress. The fiscal year ends Sept. 30.
Sources say the target list has been changing in recent days. A list provided toAgri-Pulse by a major aid organization indicated $6.5 million in funding for Feed the Future innovation labs could be cut as well as $30 million in food security funding earmarked for faith-based organizations. Another $73 million in Community Development Funds financed through the Food for Peace program also is at risk.
Jacob Ricker-Gilbert, who oversees Purdue University’s Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Processing and Post-Harvest Handling, said his project is proceeding as normal at this point and hoping it isn’t affected.
UC Davis manages five of those programs. The Feed the Future Innovation Labs conduct research aimed at developing countries. They cover a range of research areas, from gender equity and financing to sustainable agriculture, climate-resilient chickpeas and genetic solutions to Newcastle disease in chickens.
Walnut producer joins tariff challenge
A walnut farm in California is supporting a lawsuit challenging the president’s authority to impose Section 232 tariffs for national security reasons, saying U.S. agriculture has suffered “irreparable” harm.
The lawsuit was filed Aug. 6 by the American Institute for International Steel. Basrai Farms has since filed a “friend of the court” brief. The lawsuit is an appeal of a March decision by the Court on International Trade.
Retaliatory tariffs “have significantly decreased the total amount and price of U.S. agricultural exports, including walnuts,” asserts the farm, a 300-acre operation in Yuba City growing walnuts and prunes. “The walnut sector alone is facing retaliatory tariffs ranging from 15 to 100 percent from China, India and Turkey,” markets that made up 15% of the walnut shipments in 2016-17, the brief says.
Section 232 “unconstitutionally extends the President’s authority to adjust imports over the entire economy regardless of any impact on ‘national security,’” Basrai Farms argues.
Looking to the future: Basrai Farms says the mere threat of tariffs on European and Japanese automobiles is already affecting the ag industry, and cites a study showing that if additional Section 232 tariffs are placed on cars, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) would fall by about one-third of a percentage point and result in a loss of more than 200,000 full-time jobs.
Pence links USMCA to China talks
Vice President Mike Pence is trying to increase the pressure on Democrats to approve the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement by saying the pact is critical to prospects for a deal with China.
“By passing the USMCA, we’ll strengthen the President’s hand in negotiations with China,” Pence said in a speech Monday to the Detroit Economic Club.
Pence also expressed optimism about the negotiations with China. “Trump has a positive relationship with President Xi, and we have great respect for the Chinese people. We're in the midst of productive discussions with China, and they'll continue in the weeks ahead.”
Update on employment figures
Despite the high job growth numbers reported yesterday, the Central Valley struggles with high unemployment, according to CALmatters. Tulare County saw 10% unemployment last month, while Kern County had 8.4% and Fresno County was at 7.3%.
He said it:
“When I go home to San Francisco, I bring my food scraps with me.” – Jared Blumenfeld in a recent interview on KQED. He was lamenting how Sacramento does not have a citywide composting program (though it has experimented with one before).
Ben Nuelle and Steve Davies contributed to this report.
Comments? Questions? Tips? Email comments to brad@agri-pulse.com.
Agri-Pulse Daybreak West is brought to you by FMC.
August 20, 2019
Almonds shipments are up, despite tariffs
The Almond Board of California last week issued its final report for the 2018 crop year. Tariffs led to drops in almond shipments to China by 25% and to Turkey by 30%. Yet the industry finishes the year with a record 2.26 billion pounds shipped. Last year it was 2.25 billion pounds.
On that note: Blue Diamond Senior Vice President Bill Morecraft reports that almonds and other specialty crops should not be impacted by China’s threat of additional tariffs last week.
ICYMI: American Pistachio Growers has reported a nearly $3 billion increase in shipments following reduced tariffs between 2009 and 2017. That breaks down to a difference of $173 million annually.
The tariffs had been lowered or eliminated in Israel, Mexico, China, Hong Kong and the European Union. Excluding China and Hong Kong, that number would be nearly $4.5 billion.
Ag regions see some of California’s fastest job growth
Beacon Economics reports in its latest jobs analysis that California’s job growth has slowed. The research firm also says a continuing decline in the labor force is a concern. Yet the unemployment rate is at a near-historic low of 4.1% for the state.
Salinas topped the list of cities for the highest growth rate for nonfarm jobs over this time last year, at 3.7%. Several other ag communities had high ranks as well:
| Central Valley | North Coast | Central Coast |
| Fresno: 3.4% | Napa: 1.9% | Salinas: 3.7% |
| Visalia: 2.6% | Santa Barbara: 3.3% | |
| Bakersfield: 2.6% | ||
| Hanford: 2.5% | ||
| Merced: 2.3% | ||
| Yuba: 2.3% |
Trump adviser: Trade war isn’t hurting farmers, economy
White House trade adviser Peter Navarro denies that the trade war with China is a drag on the economy or threatening the livelihoods of farmers.
President Trump “has the backs of farmers,” Navarro said Sunday on CNN. “And all the money we're taking in our tariffs, a lot of that is going right to the farmers to keep us whole. Let's make no mistake about it. China is targeting those farmers to buckle our knees.”
Keep in mind: Navarro is talking about the Market Facilitation Program, which USDA is funding with its borrowing authority through the Commodity Credit Corp.
Navarro also insisted that it’s China, not the U.S., that is suffering due to tariffs. “China's bearing the entire burden of the tariffs. … What we see here, unequivocally, is that China is bearing the burden by lowering their prices."
The Chinese take: A new anonymous op-ed in Xinhua – a Chinese government-controlled media outlet – warns the tariffs will still “cause more pain to the U.S. side than the Chinese side.”
The op-ed went on to say that increasing U.S. tariffs on Chinese exports “will merely show once again that China is not afraid of maximum pressure, will prove that there are no winners in a trade war and that escalating economic and trade friction only harms China and the United States, and the world at large.”
Tough farm economy bites Deere
With farmers pulling back on new machinery purchases, Deere & Company reported net income of $899 million for the third quarter ended July 28, 2019, with sales dropping 3% to $8.97 billion during that same time period.
"John Deere's third-quarter results reflected the high degree of uncertainty that continues to overshadow the agricultural sector," said Samuel R. Allen, chairman and chief executive officer. "Concerns about export-market access, near-term demand for commodities such as soybeans, and overall crop conditions, have caused many farmers to postpone major equipment purchases. At the same time, general economic conditions remain positive and are contributing to strong results for Deere's construction and forestry business."
For the first nine months of the year, net income was $2.532 billion, or $7.87 per share, compared with $1.584 billion, or $4.82 per share, for the same period last year.
This Week in Sacramento:
Monday, Aug. 19
10:00 – CDFA will hold a webinar on Climate Smart Agriculture technical assistance
10:00 – Senate Appropriations will take up AB 386 on energy efficiency for farmworker housing; AB 409 on grants to help farmers adapt to climate change;AB 1783 on streamlining farmworker housing
1:00 – State Water Board will discuss waste discharge for wineries
2:00 – Senate Floor will take up AB 450 on bees; AB 454 on migratory birds; AB 419 on fees related to recycling kitchen grease; AB 657 on a commercial feed fee; AB 1801 on cattle inspections
Tuesday, Aug. 20
9:30 – State Water Board will discuss Prop 68 funding for treating groundwater for drinking
9:30 – Senate Environmental Quality will take up AJR 10 on the Federal Clean Air Act
1:00 – CalRecycle will discuss (online here) reducing methane emissions from dairy and livestock, via a draft environmental review report on SB 1383 (2016)
Wednesday, Aug. 21
9:00 – Assembly Appropriations will take up SB 54 on reducing plastic in food products, SB 1 on “Trump insurance,” SB 153 on hemp, SB 253 on environmental farming incentives, SB 449 on Pierce's Disease research
1:30 – Joint Hearing Senate Select Committee on the 2020 United States Census and the Assembly Select Committee on the Census will discuss “How the census outreach, communication and public relations effort will reach the hard to count”
Friday, Aug. 23
9:00 – CDFA will discuss its Healthy Soils Program
He said it:
“I never thought I'd start my week defending the bald eagle and end my week defending the statue of liberty" – Gov. Gavin Newsom, during a press conference Friday announcing an injunction against the Trump administration on its immigration rule. The administration also promised last week to file a lawsuit over new provisions to the Endangered Species Act.
Ben Nuelle, Bill Tomson, Sara Wyant and Steve Davies contributed to this report.
Comments? Questions? Tips? Email comments to brad@agri-pulse.com.
Agri-Pulse Daybreak West is brought to you by FMC.
