House
panel OKs farm bill with food stamp cuts [Associated Press]
The
House Agriculture Committee on Wednesday approved a sweeping farm bill that
would trim the $80 billion-a-year food stamp program….The cuts are part of
massive legislation that costs almost $100 billion annually over five years and
would set policy for farm subsidies, rural programs and the food aid. The
Senate Agriculture Committee approved its version of the bill Tuesday, and the
full Senate is expected to start work on the bill next week. House action is
expected this summer. Current programs expire Sept. 30….Much of the savings in
the House and Senate bills comes from eliminating annual direct payments, a
subsidy frequently criticized because it isn't tied to production or crop prices.
Part of those savings would go toward the deficit reduction, but the rest of
the money would create new programs and raise subsidies for some crops while
business is booming in the agricultural sector.
Senate
votes to extend federal water projects law [Associated Press]
The
Senate on Wednesday put aside its partisan differences to extend the federal
government's main water resources law, which promotes investment in port
improvements, flood protection, dam and levee projects and environmental
restoration. The smooth passage of the Water Resources Development Act on a 83-14
vote was in sharp contrast to the last time Congress took up a WRDA bill in
2007, when President George W. Bush vetoed it and the Democratic-led Congress
retaliated with the first veto override of the Bush presidency.…The newest
version of WRDA met resistance from the Obama administration. While stopping
short of a veto threat, the administration faulted the measure for speeding up
environmental reviews, increasing federal obligations to projects and doing
little to address the Army Corps' construction backlog. The bill, which now
goes to the House, also was criticized by some environmental and fiscally
conservative groups….The American Farm Bureau Federation noted that 95 percent
of U.S. agriculture exports and imports move through U.S. harbors, supporting
more than 400,000 jobs. "However, unless WRDA is approved, the inland
waterway system is at risk of becoming a potential detriment to the nation
rather than a comparative strength."
State
proposes regulation tightening of county's most-used fumigant [Santa Cruz
Sentinel]
State
pesticide regulators are proposing to tighten regulations on the use of
chloropicrin, a fumigant widely used in California's $2 billion strawberry
industry. The proposed rules, released Wednesday by the state Department of
Pesticide Regulation, are in response to a study of health risks completed by
regulators in 2010. The department will accept public comment until July
31….The proposed rules would increase buffer zones around applications, limit
the amount of acreage for applications, impose requirements for notification
and emergency preparedness, and lengthen the time fields must be covered by
tarps. Carolyn O'Donnell, spokeswoman for the California Strawberry Commission,
said the group hadn't had time to analyze the proposal, but would be assessing
the impact with an eye toward attempting to negotiate changes if need be. The
proposed rule change wasn't unexpected, she said….
California
short on key state water workers, officials say [Sacramento Bee]
California
officials say the state cannot retain enough trained workers to efficiently run
and maintain its complex water delivery system, a problem that has consequences
for cities and farms statewide. State pay for some key jobs, they say, has
fallen so far behind the industry's standard that the Department of Water
Resources serves as a farm system for private utilities and other government
entities. The problem costs taxpayers extra tens of millions of dollars each
year to move water around the state, officials say, because facilities aren't
managed efficiently.
Kings
County fights to keep rail lawsuits separate [Fresno Bee]
Kings
County opponents of high-speed rail are battling the California High-Speed Rail
Authority to keep their legal fight on track. Hanford farmer John Tos, Hanford
homeowner Aaron Fukuda and the Kings County Board of Supervisors have a court
date May 31 in Sacramento for the suit they filed against the rail agency in
2011.…But in March, the rail authority filed its own court action, essentially
throwing down the gauntlet to anyone wanting to challenge the state's legal
authority to issue bonds for the project. The bonds would include money needed
for the start of construction this summer in the Fresno-Madera area. On
Thursday, a Sacramento County Superior Court judge could decide if the two
cases will be joined as one or continue as separate issues. The California
Attorney General's Office, representing the rail authority, wants the cases
combined. Attorneys for the Kings County interests are fighting to keep their
case separate.
Dry
farming draws interest of small growers in Central Valley [Sacramento Bee]
A
centuries-old farming technique called dry farming - once the order of the day
in the Central Valley - is once again drawing the interest of some of the
region's farmers. The technique is as simple as it is risky. Dry farming relies
solely on rainwater to keep crops growing throughout a dry season. Used for
centuries in the Mediterranean region to grow crops like olives and grapes, the
technique is not for the faint of heart. A year such as this, with a dry
winter, can devastate crop output and put an onerous dent in a farmer's wallet.
Ag
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