The Department of Water Resources identified a combination of storm preparation and warm weather infringed on early February advances, leaving the statewide snowpack at 85% of average.
Though DWR confirms that February storms did not accumulate as much snowpack as they had hoped, winter weather finally reached the central and southern Sierra.
The disparity of snowpack across the Sierra remains high, sitting at 104% of average for the northern region but 70% in the southern region, which would require roughly 12 more inches to reach the April 1 average.
UFW sues Border Patrol over Kern County raids
United Farm Workers and five Kern County residents filed a complaint against the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Border Patrol last week, claiming they violated the Constitution and other federal laws.
The plaintiffs argue that federal authorities broke the Fourth and Fifth amendments during early January raids by conducting unreasonable search and seizures and obstructing the right to due process.
The 71-page complaint details “Operation Return to Sender” and claims the federal agents targeted “people who appeared to be Latino or who work as farm workers.” UFW reported that border patrol agents detained Maria Guadalupe Hernandez Espinoza and presented her with documents to sign but did not allow her to read them, nor did they allegedly grant her audience with an immigration judge.
Open Mic features Garamendi
This week’s guest on Agri-Pulse’s Open Mic is U.S. Rep. John Garamendi. California's 8th district Democrat is a strong advocate for agriculture, nutrition programs and global humanitarian aid.
As a member of the Agriculture Research Caucus, Garamendi believes DOGE cuts in government employees and spending cuts will lead to ill-fated consequences for farmers. These include decreased crop and livestock disease research and readiness, as well as dramatic cuts to food and medical aid for those in impoverished areas of the world. Garamendi sees little chance the California legislature will make changes to Proposition 12, California’s animal welfare law, leaving that responsibility to Washington and perhaps a new farm bill.
Listen to the podcast at Agri-Pulse.com.
Rollins pledges ‘new era of prosperity’ of agriculture
Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins is making some bold promises that rural America will boom again as the result of President Donald Trump’s policies.
Speaking at Commodity Classic in Denver on Sunday, Rollins pledged to work with farmers to bring in a “new era of prosperity that … perhaps we've not seen in our lifetime.” At another point, she said, “We will usher in a new era of prosperity and opportunity, innovation and revitalization in rural America.”
She repeatedly stressed that the department was rooting out any vestiges of diversity, equity and inclusion policies and said she was working with EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin to “unleash prosperity in rural America through a massive deregulation project.”
Take note: She also announced that the upcoming $10 billion in market relief payments for row crop producers would be known as ECAP, for the Emergency Commodity Assistance Program.
By the way: About 10,700 people had registered for Commodity Classic as of Sunday. Classic is the annual meeting of grain and soybean producers and equipment manufacturers.
Read our full report on Rollins’ appearance at the meeting.
Johnson, Dems trade blame for spending impasse
President Donald Trump has thrown his support behind passing another CR that would fund the government to the end of fiscal 2025 on Sept. 30. Republicans also want to put into law the spending reductions that Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency initiative has been making by canceling government contracts and programs.
A possible government shutdown is less than two weeks away, when funding is set to run out. President Trump wants to pass another continuing resolution that would fund the government until Sept. 30. But Republicans and Democrats remain at an impasse over the issue.
State of play: The House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said Sunday on NBC's Meet the Press alleged that "Democrats have shown no interest in finding a reasonable solution" to the funding impasse.
But Democrats are demanding assurances that Trump commit to honoring the funding levels in a new CR, which can’t pass the Senate without Democratic votes.
For more on this week’s agenda, read our Washington Week Ahead.
Trump opens new front in Canadian trade spat
Trump this weekend directed officials to probe whether lumber and timber imports are hurting national security – kickstarting a process that could lead to new tariffs.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick will lead the probe. The department has 270 days to report its findings and recommend next steps, which may include tariffs, export controls and measures to boost domestic production.
Canada provides the bulk of U.S. wood imports. The products have been at the center of a long-running trade dispute between the two countries. The U.S. has long complained that the Canadian lumber industry benefits from unfair subsidies that allow it to price products below the fair market rate.
The move is sure to further disgruntle Canadian policymakers. Any new tariffs emerging from the new probe would land on top of new U.S. duties slated for Tuesday that are already rankling Canadian leaders and consumers.
Final word:
“I loved working for the NRCS because I was helping people.” — Maxwell Silver, who was fired last month from USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service after being the its sole geologist for California, with specialties in landslides and groundwater. He received the notice while supporting wildfire recovery efforts in Los Angeles.
