Federal

 The Trump administration on Friday finalized changes to sweeping federal land use plans for the West, easing restrictions on energy companies and other industries in a way officials said would still protect a struggling bird species. The Trump administration on Friday finalized changes to sweeping federal land use plans for the West, easing restrictions on energy companies and other industries in a way officials said would still protect a struggling bird species. [node:read-more:link]

A new agreement between the U.S. and Brazil means U.S. wheat farmers will compete on a level playing field to sell their crop to that South American nation. U.S. Wheat Associates and the National Association of Wheat Growers welcomed the news that Brazil has agreed to a duty-free tariff rate quota for wheat, a longstanding obligation under that nation’s World Trade Organization commitments.The agreement opens an annual opportunity for U.S. [node:read-more:link]

The Supreme Court agreed on Monday to hear a case next term concerning Kansas' prosecution of three undocumented immigrants for using stolen Social Security numbers in an effort to gain employment.Those convictions were overturned when the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that the federal immigration law at issue preempts a state from prosecuting undocumented immigrants, when the basis of the claim comes from information that has been culled from federal immigration forms.The case raises the question about the extent to which federal immigration law preempts states from also trying to enforce imm [node:read-more:link]

A number of US officials visited South Africa at the request of President Donald Trump as part of an investigation into the country’s land expropriation process. Trump raised eyebrows in 2018 after he tweeted that the South African government was ‘seizing land from white farmers’.Trump asked his secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, to study the seizure and expropriation of land in South Africa, along with the killing of farmers. [node:read-more:link]

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is launching a new “Pests and Diseases” webpage. The new page lists all pest and disease programs managed by APHIS as part of its mission to protect American agriculture and natural resources. On the new page, users can search by type (plant, animal), keyword (avian, fruit fly, cotton), or by the specific pest or disease (coconut rhinoceros beetle, brucellosis). [node:read-more:link]

With tariffs continuing to take a toll on U.S. businesses, farmers, communities, and families across the country, a new report by IHS Markit outlines the impact of tariffs on the equipment manufacturing industry and the broader U.S. economy. “This report shows that tariffs continue to take a toll on U.S. [node:read-more:link]

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents have seized about 1 million pounds of pork imported from China amid concerns it could contain the African swine flu disease. Authorities seized the supplies over the last week in New York after the disease was found to have infected some Chinese pork products. [node:read-more:link]

One thing you can say about any member of the Trump administration: They are consistent in their hatred of almost anyone who needs a financial helping hand. And they will pursue that hatred to the point of damaging the American economy. The Trump administration’s new budget, released Monday, includes staggering proposed cuts to social welfare programs and needs such as Medicare, Medicaid, housing and education. These cuts are not just mean, though they are indeed very, very mean. [node:read-more:link]

The United States and European Union have reached an agreement in principle to allow U.S. farmers a share of the E.U.’s annual 45,000-ton quota for hormone-free beef imports. South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association President Steve Ollerich says that’s a good first step in possibly establishing more market share for U.S. beef in that market. He says a final trade agreement with the E.U. won’t come overnight.However, Ollerich says once the European consumers get a taste of U.S. beef, they’ll want even more of it.Negotiations to include the U.S. [node:read-more:link]

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a rule to finalize the new compliance dates for the agricultural water requirements in the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Produce Safety Rule. [node:read-more:link]