NSAC Archives for November, 2010
House Approves Funding for Pigford II Settlement
Tuesday, November 30th, 2010
On Tuesday, November 30, the House of Representatives passed the Claims Resolution Act of 2010, which authorizes nearly $4.6 billion to fund the settlements in two class-action discrimination lawsuits. The measure passed 256-152. It now goes to the President for his signature, ending a long, tortuous, but ultimately successful path to becoming law. The lawsuits Read the Rest…
USDA Publishes Grasslands Reserve Program Final Rule
Tuesday, November 30th, 2010
On Monday, November 29, NRCS published its final rule for the Grasslands Reserve Program (GRP) in the Federal Register. You can download a pdf version of the final rule here. USDA published its interim final rule (IFR) for public comment on January 21, 2009, and subsequently published an amendment to address issues associated with wind Read the Rest…
Senate Passes Food Safety Modernization Act
Tuesday, November 30th, 2010
Friday Update to this story: Once the Senate-passed bill reached the House this week, a new problem emerged. The House claimed its right to be the originator of all bills with revenue provisions (in this case user fees that food companies would pay to help offset the costs of food recalls). Instead of simply passing Read the Rest…
Pollan, Schlosser, McReynolds Weigh in on Food Safety Bill
Monday, November 29th, 2010
The Senate tentatively expects to begin voting on the Food Safety Modernization Act (S. 510) tonight (Nov. 29), around 6:30pm EST and conclude the voting on November 30. NSAC’s letter to the Senate in support of the measure can be read here. If you haven’t already called your Senators to voice your support for the Read the Rest…
USDA Announces Funding for Conservation Projects in Mississippi River Basin
Monday, November 29th, 2010
On Monday, November 29, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the availability of up to $43 million in FY 2011 funding for existing conservation projects to improve water quality in forty-one priority watersheds through the Mississippi River Basin Healthy Watersheds Initiative (MRBI), administered by USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS). The funding will be available to Read the Rest…
Defend Farm Value-Added / Local and Regional Food
Monday, November 29th, 2010
Food Safety Action Alert Call Your Senators Today To Defend Family Farm Value Added – Processing and Local and Regional Food Systems Debate and voting on The Food Safety Modernization Act (S. 510) is set to begin on the Senate floor TODAY! The bill takes important steps to improve food safety rules that affect large Read the Rest…
SARE Announces New Director
Monday, November 29th, 2010
On Monday, November 29, the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program announced the appointment of Rob Hedberg, SARE’s interim director since January 2009, as its new national director. Since growing up on a small farm in Michigan, Hedberg has dedicated his career to agriculture science, education, and policy, most recently at USDA’s National Institute Read the Rest…
GIPSA Rule Comment Period Ends
Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010
The 150 day public comment period on the livestock and poultry competition and contract fairness rule proposed by USDA’s Grain Inspection, Packers & Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) closed on Monday, November 23. There were over 46,000 public submissions as of November 17 and in all likelihood the final number will exceed 50,000. The sheer magnitude demonstrates Read the Rest…
USDA Publishes Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) Final Rule
Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010
On Tuesday, November 23, NRCS published its final rule for the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) in the Federal Register. You can download a pdf version of the final rule here. USDA published its interim final rule (IFR) for public comment on January 16, 2009. It subsequently published two amendments to address a number of Read the Rest…
Local Food, Rural Development in New Issue of USDA’s “Amber Waves”
Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010
USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) has released the December issue of its quarterly publication, Amber Waves. This issue has several articles that might be of interest to followers of NSAC’s work, as the articles address issues such as rural development, farm labor, and local food systems. Click here to access the December issue of Amber Read the Rest…
