For most, the Farm Bill is understood to provide a safety net for the nation’s agricultural producers and a nutrition-assistance program for the nation’s most vulnerable. This understanding is generally correct; the Farm...more
8/20/2024
/ Conservation ,
Conservation Easements ,
Contract Terms ,
Farm Bill ,
Farm Service Agency (FSA) ,
Farmers ,
Land Owners ,
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) ,
Penalties ,
Quality Incentive Program (QIP) ,
Regulatory Agenda
Co-Author Jordan Wimpy The United States Supreme Court issued on June 27th a stay on the Ozone Federal Implementation Plan (i.e, Good Neighbor Rule) while the District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals hears and decides...more
Co-Author Jordan Wimpy The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) transmitted a letter to the Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment – Division of Environmental Quality (“DEQ”) addressing the State’s...more
On Wednesday, September 14, 2022, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (the Service) published a rule proposing to list the tricolored bat (Perimyotis subflavus) as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA, or...more
On Thursday July 21, 2022, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (the Service) finalized a rule rescinding revisions to the Service’s regulations for excluding areas of critical habitat under section 4(b)(2) of the Endangered...more
On Friday, June 24, 2022, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (the Service) finalized a rule rescinding the regulatory definition of “habitat,” as the term was used in the Endangered Species Act (the Act) and the various...more
On Wednesday, March 23, 2022, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (the Service) published a rule proposing to reclassify the northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis), a bat species found in all or portions of 37 U.S....more
On Thursday, March 3, 2022, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (the Service) published a rule proposing to list the western fanshell (Cyprogenia aberti) and Ouachita fanshell (Cyprogenia cf. aberti), both freshwater mussels, as...more
With every change in the federal executive administration, speculation rages over what changes to expect in regulation, policy, and guidance. The current transition is no different. And agricultural policy and conservation...more
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (“USFWS” or “the Service”) recently announced the final rule defining “the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA” or “Act”) as it applies to conduct resulting in the injury...more
On Friday, December 18, 2020, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (the “Service”) published a final rule amending the Service’s regulations for excluding areas of critical habitat under section 4(b)(2) of the Endangered Species...more
On Wednesday, December 16, 2020, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (the Service) finalized for the first time a regulatory definition for the term “habitat,” as the term is used in the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the...more
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (“Service”) proposed on August 5th for the first time a regulatory definition for the term “habitat” as it is used in the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the various implementing regulations....more
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (“USFWS” or “the Service”) announced yesterday in the Federal Register that it has initiated status reviews for 10 animal and plant species under the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”)....more
On March 12, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the Revised Method for National Level Species Biological Evaluations of Conventional Pesticides (the “Revised Method”).
The Revised Method guides...more
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (“USDA”) recent efforts to update the Farm Bill’s Title II conservation programs continued into the 2020 year.
USDA has issued since early December a number of interim final rules to...more
We wrote in early December that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) issued an “interim rule” to revise the terms and conditions of the Conservation Reserve Program and implement certain program amendments required by...more
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Credit Corporation (“CCC”) recently published in the Federal Register an “interim rule” to revise the terms and conditions of the Conservation Reserve Program and implement...more
February and March were busy months for the Arkansas Agriculture Department’s Arkansas State Plant Board (“ASPB”).
On February 20, 2019, the State Plant Board voted to approve regulatory changes for in-crop, over-the-top...more
4/9/2019
/ Administrative Authority ,
Agricultural Sector ,
Chemicals ,
Crops ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Farms ,
FIFRA ,
Final Rules ,
Herbicides ,
Pesticides ,
Proposed Regulation ,
USDA
Senate Bill 550 was recently introduced which would address liquid animal waste systems and liquid livestock litter utilization.
A key provision of the legislation would be the proposed transfer of liquid animal waste...more
Yesterday the Arkansas Agriculture Department’s Arkansas State Plant Board gave public notice of a 30-day public comment period and a February 20, 2019, public hearing for proposed regulations authorizing the over-the-top use...more
The White River Waterkeeper, of Arkansas, recently joined other environmental and animal rights advocacy organizations to file a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) 2016...more
On Friday December 7, 2018, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) published in the Federal Register an interim rule for the Highly Erodible Land Conservation and Wetland Conservation Compliance regulations of the...more
12/11/2018
/ Agricultural Land ,
Agricultural Sector ,
Conservation ,
Department of Agriculture ,
Farms ,
Interim Rule ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
USDA ,
Water Quality ,
Wetlands
Effective today, the Federal Highway Administration (“FHWA”), Federal Transit Administration (“FTA”), and Federal Railroad Administration (“FRA”) begin operating with amended regulations to implement the purposes and...more
11/28/2018
/ Amended Regulation ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Review ,
Federal Highway Administration ,
Federal Railroad Administration ,
Federal Transit Administration ,
Final Rules ,
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) ,
MAP-21 ,
NEPA
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced late yesterday evening that it extended the registration of the herbicide dicamba for “over-the-top” use for a period of two years – until December 20, 2020 – pursuant to the...more