by Elizabeth | Mar 5, 2024 | Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act, Business Organizations, Corporate Farming, Foreign Ownership, Land Ownership, United States Department of Agriculture
On March 4, 2024, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem signed into law House Bill 1231 (“HB 1231”) which amends a state law that limits certain foreign investments in real property located within the boundaries of the state. Specifically, HB 1231 places additional...
by Ramie Parsons | Mar 5, 2024 | Monthly Round Up
February Roundup As February has ended, the staff at the National Agricultural Law Center continue to bring trusted research and information in agricultural and food law to stakeholders across the country. Outlined below are many of the new NALC resources from...
by Ramie Parsons | Feb 29, 2024 | The Feed
The Feed newsletter highlights recent legal developments affecting agriculture, with issues released twice a month. Click below to sign up for The Feed, and also read the PDF for Vol. 2, Issue 4, from February 29, 2024. To sign up for The Feed, click here. Click here...
by Brigit Rollins | Feb 29, 2024 | Brigit Rollins, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, Environmental Law, Environmental Protection Agency, Fish and Wildlife Service
On February 15, 2024, a federal court in the District of Columbia issued a ruling formally vacating the Environmental Protection Agency’s (“EPA”) December 2020 decision to allow the state of Florida to assume permitting authority for section 404 of the Clean Water Act...
by Emily Stone | Feb 27, 2024 | Emily Stone, Food Labeling, Food Safety, Local Food Systems
Have you ever wondered who regulates the pickles your next-door neighbor makes and sells out of their home? The regulation of homemade food products, also known as cottage food products, has been a popular topic of conservation among both the public and private...
by Elizabeth | Feb 22, 2024 | Biotechnology, International Trade, Samantha Capaldo
In 2023, the United States (“U.S.”) exported $13.1 billion in corn, approximately $5.4 billion of which went to Mexico. As a result, Mexico was the largest importer of U.S. corn in 2023. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, over ninety percent of...
by Elizabeth | Feb 20, 2024 | Focusing on Foreign Investment, Foreign Ownership, Land Ownership, Micah Brown
On February 1, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit granted a partial injunction in favor of two individuals challenging a Florida law that restricts certain foreign investments in real property. In May 2023, a group of Chinese citizens living in...
by Ramie Parsons | Feb 16, 2024 | The Feed
The Feed newsletter highlights recent legal developments affecting agriculture, with issues released twice a month. Click below to sign up for The Feed, and also read the PDF for Vol. 2, Issue 3, from February 15, 2024. To sign up for The Feed, click here. Click here...
by Brigit Rollins | Feb 15, 2024 | Brigit Rollins, Environmental Law, Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, Pesticides, The Deal with Dicamba
On February 6, 2024, a federal court in Arizona issued a ruling directing the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) to vacate the 2020 registrations allowing over-the-top use of three dicamba-based pesticides, XtendiMax, Engenia, and Tavium. This marks the second...
by Elizabeth | Feb 14, 2024 | Agritourism, Landowner Liability, Research Fellows, Rusty Rumley
Tayler Workman, NALC Research Fellow and Rusty Rumley, Senior Staff Attorney On April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse will sweep across the United States. Its path will take it from the western side of Texas all the way to the northern most points of Maine –...
by Emily Stone | Feb 13, 2024 | Alternative Proteins, Biotechnology, Emily Stone, Food Labeling, Food Safety and Inspection Service, United States Department of Agriculture
In the past few years, the definition of “meat” has become a hot topic for debate. With the popularity of meat alternative food products, such as tofu, and the introduction of cell-cultured products into the U.S. food supply, stakeholders have grown increasingly...
by Elizabeth | Feb 8, 2024 | Farm Labor, Labor, Samantha Capaldo
Classifying workers as “employees” or “independent contractors” is an important task for agricultural employers because of the legal obligations and protections they owe to their employees. Some agricultural employers hire workers to complete various tasks or provide...
by Elizabeth | Feb 7, 2024 | Environmental Law, Land Use Regulation, Water Law
On January 25, 2024, the Supreme Court of Nevada issued an important decision in the long running dispute over pumping groundwater from the Coyote Springs Valley north of Las Vegas to supply a housing development for 250,000 people. The dispute underlying Sullivan v....
by Elizabeth | Feb 6, 2024 | Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act, Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (CFIUS), Farm Service Agency, Focusing on Foreign Investment, Foreign Ownership, Land Ownership, Micah Brown, Natural Resources Conservation Service, United States Department of Agriculture
On January 25, 2024, Senator Mike Braun (R-IN) introduced the AFIDA Improvements Act of 2024 (S. 3666) which seeks to amend certain provisions of the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (“AFIDA”)—the federal law that requires certain foreign investors to...
by Ramie Parsons | Feb 5, 2024 | Monthly Round Up
January Roundup As January has ended, the staff at the National Agricultural Law Center continue to bring trusted research and information in agricultural and food law to stakeholders across the country. Outlined below are many of the new NALC resources from January...
by Brigit Rollins | Feb 1, 2024 | Brigit Rollins, Clean Water Act, Environmental Law, Environmental Protection Agency
In late January, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) announced that it was seeking public comment on its proposal to revise technology-based effluent limitations guidelines and standards for meat and poultry products facilities that discharge wastewater into...
by Emily Stone | Jan 30, 2024 | Emily Stone, Estate Planning, Land Ownership, Legal Issues with Land Trusts, Sustainable Agriculture, Taxation
As conservation has grown as a priority for both those in the private and public sectors, tools like nonprofit land trusts have become popular. Nonprofit land trusts are typically 501(c)(3) organizations that operate for the purpose of preserving and conserving land....
by Ramie Parsons | Jan 25, 2024 | The Feed
The Feed newsletter highlights recent legal developments affecting agriculture, with issues released twice a month. Click below to sign up for The Feed, and also read the PDF for Vol. 2, Issue 2, from January 25, 2024. To sign up for The Feed, click here. Click here...
by Elizabeth | Jan 25, 2024 | Farm Labor, Labor, Samantha Capaldo
The H-2A program, which allows employers to employ foreign nationals to fill temporary U.S. agricultural jobs, plays an essential role in the U.S. agricultural workforce. According to the U.S. Department of State, almost 300,000 H-2A visas were issued in 2022, making...
by Elizabeth | Jan 23, 2024 | Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act, Farm Service Agency, Focusing on Foreign Investment, Foreign Ownership, Land Ownership, Leases, Micah Brown, United States Department of Agriculture
Recently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (“USDA”) announced that it is seeking public feedback—due by February 16, 2024—on how foreign persons report their U.S. agricultural land holdings under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (“AFIDA”). USDA’s...
