Biden Administration

A recent decision by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold an EPA’s preliminary injunction against a group of Yakima Valley dairies means those dairies must continue to test for nitrate contamination.  That recent ruling follows an appeal by the dairy farms against a previous court order mandating the expanded tests.   Larry ...

On Wednesday, USDA’s Rural Development announced that it will invest $94 million in Yakama Power's Clean Energy Project.  The funds come via the Powering Affordable Clean Energy program, PACE, where rural electric cooperatives and communities can use funding to lower electricity costs for businesses and families, while reducing climate pollution.    Yakama Power said th...

Once again, efforts are underway to remove the Snake River dams.  Officials in the state of Washington as well as the Federal level say the dams must be removed to help salmon migration numbers as well as the overall environment.  Central Washington’s Dan Newhouse said over the past four years of the Biden Administration, the dams have been in the crosshairs, despite the many benefits they bring t

Trade is always on the mind of Northwest Ag leaders, since the region is so dependent on overseas buyers.  But more and more, the American farming community as a whole is talking about trade, and what’s being done to open up new markets, or expand existing ones.  Derek Sandiso...

Representative Dan Newhouse said he thinks the farming community will benefit greatly with the return of President Trump.  The Central Washington Republican said trade has been one of his biggest frustrations with this current administration, which as he pointed out is vital for the state’s farm economy.   “I rea...

On Friday, representatives from USDA’s Rural Development were in the Tri-Cities, attending a ribbon-cutting for a new biofuels facility.  The facility, owned by Vancouver-WA based Tidwater Terminal Company, received over $3 million via the Inflation Reduction Act, which looked to increase the availability of domestic biofuels.  Betsy Dirkson...

The no-cost tests will be delivered FREE by the United States Postal Service starting October 2nd.

Thursday, several members of the House of Representatives, including Washington’s Dan Newhouse, Illinois’ Mike Bost, North Carolina’s David Rouzer, and Iowa’s Mariannette Miller-Meeks led 192 other House Republicans in a letter blasting the Administration for its "premature and reckless WOTUS final rule".  The Members demand th...

A debt crisis faceoff and a Farm Bill deadline are two linked challenges facing U.S. agriculture this year with predictions by one Washington D.C. Ag lobbyist that Congress will meet both challenges.  Randy Russell with food and ag policy Russell Group predicts there will be no avoiding open debate this year on the debt crisis now that the Treasury has run out of borrowing authority.   “... Read M

The EPA and Army Corps of Engineers published the revised WOTUS rule in the Federal Register this week.  The publication means the revised rule will go into effect on March 20th.   EPA and the Army Corps announced the rule at the end of 2022, which will replace the Navigable Waters Protection Rule from the Trump Administration.  At the ...