Federal

Republicans on the House Agriculture Committee dished up treats for the insurance and chemical industries, while handing empty bowls to millions of struggling Americans. [node:read-more:link]

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway, R-Texas, introduced a draft Farm Bill that runs counter to what farmers need. The Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), a program popular with Minnesota farmers, is proposed to be completely eliminated.  CSP is the nation's largest farm conservation program, supporting clean water and environmental benefits while providing farmers with support to implement conservation practices. [node:read-more:link]

Reports indicate that a deal on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) could be imminent, but dairy and other agricultural components remain outstanding. Negotiators from the U.S., Canada and Mexico continued to hammer out details of the nearly 20 outstanding chapters this week in hopes of finalizing a deal ahead of Mexico’s presidential elections this summer. [node:read-more:link]

U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and John Thune (R-SD), members of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, unveiled bipartisan legislation they are advocating to be included in the 2018 farm bill. [node:read-more:link]

A bipartisan coalition led by Senators Heidi Heitkamp and Susan Collins introduced the Next Generation in Agriculture Act (S. 2762), which will drive investments in the 2018 Farm Bill toward programs and policies that create economic opportunity for beginning farmers and ranchers. [node:read-more:link]

Following reports of an increase in aggressive tactics in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids throughout New York, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo last week issued a cease and desist letter to halt the enforcement actions or he says he will commence legal action. Cuomo specifically cited the recent detaining and jailing of an employee at a dairy farm in Rome, NY in his letter: “On the morning of April 18, farmer John Collins heard a commotion on his property. [node:read-more:link]

A Rabobank report finds the demise of NAFTA would lead to fewer exports of U.S. fruit, tree nuts and vegetables and more imports of produce from Mexico and Canada.While U.S. consumers would likely see lower prices for produce at the grocery store if the North American Free Trade Agreement implodes, U.S. growers of those products would lose out due to fewer exports to Mexico and Canada and more imports from those nations. [node:read-more:link]

Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Anne Hazlett today unveiled a new interactive webpage to identify best practices for building rural prosperity. “Rural communities need forward-thinking strategies to build strong, resilient futures,” Hazlett said. [node:read-more:link]

With a preliminary NAFTA deal reportedly near, attention is turning to how it could potentially affect U.S. agriculture. Canada's dairy market is protected by high tariffs and has been a key bone of contention, but experts expect only "marginal" concessions from Ottawa. There's also an anti-dumping provision aimed at Mexico that has been sought by Florida specialty crop producers but analysts say it could ignite trade retaliation. [node:read-more:link]

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) removed an "international priorities" page from its website in December, according to a report released this week by the Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI). [node:read-more:link]