AgClips
Recent AgClips
Oregon governor signs net neutrality bill
AP | Posted onApril 12, 2018 in Rural, SARL Members and Alumni NewsOregon Gov. Kate Brown signed a bill Monday withholding state business from internet providers who throttle traffic, making the state the second to finalize a proposal aimed at thwarting moves by federal regulators to relax net neutrality requirements. The bill stops short of actually putting new requirements on internet service providers in the state, but blocks the state from doing business with providers that offer preferential treatment to some internet content or apps, starting in 2019.
Washington state can sue Purdue Pharma over opioid marketing: judge
Reuters | Posted onApril 12, 2018 in Rural, SARL Members and Alumni NewsA Washington state court judge has rejected OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP’s bid to dismiss a lawsuit by the state’s attorney general seeking to hold the pharmaceutical company accountable for its role the opioid epidemic. King County Superior Court Judge Catherine Moore on Friday denied Purdue’s motion to dismiss Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s case, becoming the third judge nationally to allow a state to pursue claims against the opioid manufacturer.
97 people arrested in immigration raid at meat plant
Meatingplace (free registration required) | Posted onApril 12, 2018 in Agriculture NewsU.S. immigration officials executed a criminal search warrant at the Southeastern Provision meatpacking plant in Grainger County, Tenn., leading to the arrest of 97 individuals who are subject to removal from the United States.
Mountaire gets the go-ahead on wastewater treatment plan
Meatingplace (free registration required) | Posted onApril 12, 2018 in Agriculture NewsThe state of Delaware said it has granted permission to Mountaire Farms to store sludge at its Millsboro poultry complex, as the next step in a multi-year plan to improve the facility’s wastewater treatment process. The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control issued a permit that allows Mountaire to transfer excess sludge to a previously abandoned lagoon at the facility that the company intends to retrofit for short-term storage.
SARL Member, Cindy Hyde Smith, becomes Mississippi's First Female Senator
ABC News | Posted onApril 12, 2018 in SARL Members and Alumni NewsRepublican Cindy Hyde-Smith was sworn in as the first female senator from Mississippi on Monday, bringing a record number of 23 women serving in the U.S. Senate.
SARL Treasurer, Annette Sweeney, wins Iowa Senate seat
Des Moines Register | Posted onApril 12, 2018 in SARL Members and Alumni NewsAnnette Sweeney, a former state legislator with strong ties to agriculture, won a special election Tuesday to replace Republican state Sen. Bill Dix, who resigned in March after video surfaced of him kissing a female lobbyist in a Des Moines tavern.
Immigration judge quotas will not eliminate the backlog crisis
The Hill | Posted onApril 12, 2018 in Federal NewsAttorney General Jeff Sessions has established performance goals for the immigration judges in an effort to deal with the immigration court backlog crisis. In addition to meeting at least half of the deadlines for specified types of cases, judges will have to complete at least 700 cases-a-year to receive a “satisfactory” performance rating. They currently average 678 cases-a-year. The National Association of Immigration Judges opposes the performance goals.
Trump signs executive order pushing work requirements for the poor
CNN | Posted onApril 11, 2018 in Rural, SARL Members and Alumni NewsThe president called for enforcing work requirements that are already in the law and reviewing all waivers and exemptions to such mandates. Also, the executive order asked agencies to consider adding work requirements to government aid programs that lack them. The agencies have 90 days to submit a list of recommended policy and regulatory changes.The move is the latest step in the administration's effort to require low-income Americans to work for their federal benefits.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signs new limits on welfare programs into law
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | Posted onApril 11, 2018 in Rural, SARL Members and Alumni NewsWisconsin Gov. Scott Walker on Tuesday signed new limits on welfare programs into law, committing state and federal taxpayers to nearly $80 million in spending to draw more people into the labor force. "Our ... welfare reform bills ensure help to those who truly need it, while providing the training and assistance they need to re-enter the workforce and regain independence," Walker said in a statement.Supporters have said that, with the state's unemployment rate at an all-time low of 2.9%, it's the ideal time to shift more people from food stamps and other public benefits to jobs.
Iowa 'sanctuary' city ban signed into law
Des Moines Register | Posted onApril 11, 2018 in Rural, SARL Members and Alumni NewsIowa cities and counties that intentionally violate federal immigration law will have their state funding revoked under a bill signed into law by Gov. Kim Reynolds Tuesday. Senate File 481 targets so-called sanctuary communities across the state and has drawn widespread debate in the Capitol and across the state. It takes effect July 1. Reynolds, a Republican, did not hold a public bill signing event.