Republicans and Democrats clashed over legislation that would give states a larger role in recovering endangered species at a hearing before the Environment and Public Works Committee Wednesday.

In a major overhaul of the National Environmental Policy Act, a new rule released by the White House Wednesday would establish deadlines for completion of NEPA reviews and reduce the scope of actions needing such review.

A second major meatpacking plant is now offline as the industry continues to struggle with outbreaks of the COVID-19 virus. JBS USA announced it’s closing its beef packing plant in Greeley, Colo., until April 24. Two workers have died as a result of the outbreak. JBS is the biggest employer in a county that now has at least 740 cases.

A federal court has rejected a First Amendment challenge to the operation of 15 state beef checkoff boards, ruling that promotions funded with checkoff money are government speech, not private speech.

Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations classified as “large” would be phased out by 2040 under a bill Sen. Cory Booker announced on Monday. The legislation would also restore country-of-origin labeling for beef and pork and add COOL requirements for dairy products.

The U.S. Cattlemen’s Association fired back at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s plans to engage on “Product of the U.S.A.” label discussions, saying the situation requires urgency.

Advocates of plant-based diets, including several people who claimed they had improved their health significantly by adopting them, showed up in force Thursday to make the case that the federal government should radically modify its nutritional advice. 

For farmers and ranchers living under the uncertainty of the 2015 Waters of the United States rule, this year could bring relief to an ongoing state of regulatory confusion. Currently, the Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers are reviewing over 600,000 public comments on a revised definition of WOTUS that aims to replace the detrimental 2015 rule.