Committee clears Biden nominee Moffitt for vote in Senate Jennifer Moffitt, who would give farmers more leverage through USDA rules in dealing with meat processors, is one step away — a favorable vote in the Senate — from becoming agriculture undersecretary for marketing. Carbon credit market needs better standards – report Several programs exist to […]
USDA is given large role in Biden plan to restore competition Siding with farm activists, President Biden said “Big Ag is putting a squeeze on farmers” and signed an executive order telling the USDA to rejuvenate the livestock, seed, fertilizer and retail food markets. The executive order on competition also called on the FTC to […]
Biden says no to higher gas taxes to pay for infrastructure If a bipartisan infrastructure deal holds, Midwesterners can expect upgrades to roads, bridges and broadband networks, President Biden said on Tuesday in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. “There is no gas tax (increase),” he said. “Working families have already paid enough.” Sonny Perdue’s undisclosed deal with ADM […]
Biden tax plan puts U.S. farms at risk, says Boozman Farmers could face huge tax bills if President Biden succeeds in raising capital gains tax rates and eliminating a loophole for inherited assets such as farmland, said the senior Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee. The proposals are unpopular in farm country. Arid weather trims […]
Biden administration will replace Trump clean water rule Shortly after telling senators that he wanted a “long-term, durable solution,” EPA administrator Michael Regan said on Wednesday that the Biden administration would write a new definition of the upstream reach of clean water laws. The process would include repeal of the 2020 Trump-era rule that replaced […]
Biden proposes 16 percent increase in child nutrition outlays The Biden administration’s proposals to expand a summer food program for school-age children and to encourage schools in high-poverty areas to provide meals for free to all students would add an average $ 4 billion a year to the cost of USDA’s child nutrition programs. USDA […]
Stepping ahead of Biden, progressives propose free school meals for all More than three dozen Democrats in the House and Senate proposed a dramatic expansion of U.S. spending on school meals to provide free meals for all students, not just low-income children. “What we’ve seen during this pandemic is that a universal approach to school […]
Biden seeks full-scale summer food program for children Building on P-EBT benefits created in response to the coronavirus, President Biden proposed a vast expansion of the USDA’s summer food program on Wednesday that would be available to the 22 million children who eat school meals for free or at a reduced price. The White House […]
Biden seeks 50 percent cut in U.S. emissions, sees farming as carbon frontier By deploying clean technology, the United States can reduce its greenhouse gas emissions 50 percent by the end of this decade, said President Biden at an Earth Day summit intended to spark global action on climate change. “That’s where we’re headed as […]
Biden nominates USDA climate adviser to oversee farm supports Robert Bonnie, named USDA climate adviser on the same day President Biden took office, will soon be in charge of all farm support programs, from land stewardship to farm subsidies and crop insurance, if confirmed by the Senate. Biden nominated Bonnie for undersecretary for farm production […]
Big increases for rural power, WIC, ag research in Biden proposal Most of the increased spending proposed by President Biden for USDA’s so-called discretionary accounts would go to three things: Rural electricity, WIC and agricultural research. If approved by Congress, the money would accelerate the shift to cleaner electricity, help low-income families put food on […]
Biden proposes $ 100 billion to bring broadband to all Americans President Biden unveiled a $ 2 trillion infrastructure package — “a once-in-a-generation investment in America” — on Wednesday that calls for spending $ 100 billion to deliver affordable and reliable broadband service to all Americans. The package also proposed a $ 5 billion Rural […]
Biden to sign bill with $ 4 billion in debt relief for minority farmers With Republicans complaining of discrimination against white farmers, the House passed a coronavirus bill on Wednesday that would provide an estimated $ 4 billion in debt relief for socially disadvantaged farmers. Coronavirus bill offers aid as food insecurity eases Although in […]
‘One step closer,’ says Biden as aid bill moves to Senate A three-month extension of higher SNAP benefits and $ 4 billion in debt relief for minority farmers are in the hands of the Senate following a 219-212 vote by the House over the weekend. “We are one step closer,” said President Biden, who used […]
Schumer pledges speedy Senate action on Vilsack, other Biden nominees President Biden wants U.S. agriculture to be the first in the world to achieve net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases, with Tom Vilsack guiding the effort as agriculture secretary. Vilsack, who will have the opportunity to spell out the details of climate mitigation on Tuesday, already […]
Few states ready for Biden expansion of P-EBT Two days after taking office, President Biden directed the USDA to boost benefits by 15 percent in the P-EBT program for school-age children in low-income families, and to include children under the age of 6. The expansion would aid millions of children, but only eight states are […]