Agricultural Law Weekly Review—Week Ending April 15, 2022

Avian Influenza: USDA Confirms HPAI in Pennsylvania Commercial Layer Flock 🌾
On April 16, 2022, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) confirmed highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in a commercial layer premise in East Donegal Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.  The positive sample was taken on April 14, 2022, at a Kreider Farms-operated facility housing approximately 1.4 million layers, tested positive at the Pennsylvania Veterinary Laboratory and then confirmed by the National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa.  PDA announced that it has quarantined, through an order of special quarantine, the affected farm and all commercial poultry facilities within a 10-kilometer (6.2 mile) become part of a “Control Zone” where all poultry and associated material are subject to permitting for any movement as well as other extensive restrictions.   All layers on the initial premises were depopulated.  Subsequently, two more commercial layer premises in proximity have also tested positive and are in the process of being depopulated.  Further details are not yet publicly available.  USDA APHIS continues to maintains its public national HPAI domestic poultry database and map, now totaling at least 29 states, 213 flocks and 28.8 million birds.  Previously, on April 14, 2022, PDA announced a 60-day quarantine order (52 Pa.B. 2223) prohibiting poultry and egg exhibition at Pennsylvania county and local fairs.  According to the announcement, the temporary ban applies to all 108 local and county fairs that receive funds from the Pennsylvania Agricultural Fair Act and “prohibits the presence and display of poultry and poultry products, including eggs, feathers and other . . . items made of these parts.”

Biofuels: EPA to Issue E15 National Emergency Waiver June 2022
On April 12, 2022, the White House issued a fact sheet stating that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will issue a national emergency waiver on or about June 1, 2022 allowing the sale of E15 gasoline between June 1, 2022 through September 15, 2022.  According to the fact sheet, the White House and EPA are allowing the summer sale of E15 in response to Russian oil price increases as an effort to reduce gas prices, estimated by the administration at about 10 cents per gallon.  The White House states that EPA will work with states to ensure that the E15 summer sales do not significantly impact air quality.  Additionally, the fact sheet states that EPA is exploring other actions to promote year-round E15 sales, including modifying E15 fuel pump labels and communicating with interested states.

Water Quality: Chesapeake Bay Principals’ Staff Committee and Pennsylvania DEP Respond to EPA’s ‘No Confidence’ Evaluation of Funding for Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan
On March 21, 2022, six representatives of the Principals’ Staff Committee (PSC) Members of the Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) issued a letter to Adam Ortiz, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region III Administrator, in response to EPA’s January 2022 evaluation of the final Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (CWIP), in which EPA stated that it had “no confidence” that the proposed nitrogen and phosphorus load reductions would be accomplished “[w]ithout dedicated funding in place” and gave PSC Members 60 days to address the lack of dedicated funds before the agency acted to redistribute the six million pounds of nitrogen and 0.26 million pounds of phosphorus “among the partnership jurisdictions as appropriate.”  The letter listed the seven jurisdictions’ current annual contributions to the Chesapeake Bay Regulatory and Accountability Program (CBRAP), totaling $344,176, and states that the three jurisdictions responsible for implementation of the $53 million per year CWIP—Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York—“have been meeting to deliver on . . . implementation commitments . . . include[ing] securing funding.”  The letter also lists $44 million in budgeted allocations from Maryland ($25 million for CWIP, $6 million for Conowingo dredging solutions, and $13 million over three years for “settlement monies” to reduce Chesapeake Bay nutrient pollution) and identifies a Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC) grant program that intends to award $5 million each year for “projects that could include aspects of nutrient and sediment load reductions, any of which could potentially be attributed to the CWIP allocation.”  On March 25, 2022, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) also sent a letter to EPA Administrator Ortiz in response to EPA’s evaluation outlining several sources of potential and established CWIP funding provided by the agency the state, including $500,000 in annual contributions to the SRBC, $1.5 million to the U.S. Geological Survey for the Chesapeake Bay Non-Tidal Network, $180 million in federal COVID appropriations for “statewide watershed and wetland restoration,” and $33.5 million in Governor Wolf’s FY2022-2023 Budget for Pennsylvania’s Environmental Stewardship Fund.  Both letters from the PSC and DEP request federal funding from EPA to secure the CWIP, and DEP’s letter specifically calls for funding from the federal Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act to implement both the CWIP and state-specific watershed implementation plans.

Dairy Policy: OMB Reviewing Draft Guidance on Plant-Based Dairy Alternative Labeling
On March 31, 2022, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) received a notice for review from the U.S. Food and Drug Agency (FDA) titled “Labeling of Plant-Based Milk Alternatives and Voluntary Nutrient Statements; Draft Guidance for Industry,” which is now pending review with OMB.  Although the text of the notice has not been published by FDA or OMB, in September 2018, FDA requested comments (83 FR 49103) to instruct the agency’s approach on plant-based product labeling and dairy food names.  The request, which received nearly 12,000 comments, called for information on how consumers understand terms like “milk,” “cultured milk,” “yogurt,” and “cheese,” when used on plant-based product labels and how consumers use plant-based products with dairy names.  The 2018 comment request also sought to discover whether consumers understand and are aware of differences in the “basic nature, characteristics, ingredients, and nutritional content” of dairy products and like-named plant-based products.  FDA stated the recently submitted draft guidance is one of a series of actions of FDA over the past four years to further regulate standards of identity and plant-based labeling.  OMB lists two meetings regarding FDA’s submitted draft guidance: one on May 5, 2022, requested by the Plant Based Foods Association, and one May 16, 2022, requested by the National Milk Producers Federation.

Food Safety: Senator Issues Letter to FDA Requesting Explanations After Investigation Reveals Years of Regulatory Delay
On April 11, 2022, in response to a recent Politico investigation into the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) inaction on food safety, Senator Patty Murray of Washington, leader of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, sent a letter to FDA Commissioner Robert Califf expressing concern over the agency’s “delays and dysfunction” and requesting explanations.  The letter cites the investigation’s findings that FDA has 1) still yet to finalize agricultural water standards, despite requirements to do so under the Food Safety Modernization Act, enacted in 2011, 2) neglected to regulate toxic elements in baby food, like lead, arsenic, mercury, and cadmium, 3) failed to issue long-term voluntary reduction benchmarks for sodium, and 4) declined to promptly conduct food safety inspections and issue product recalls. The investigation also identified several structural and leadership deficiencies within the agency that hamper FDA decision-making processes.  Senator Murray’s letter requests that FDA respond to several inquiries by April 25, 2022, including descriptions of the agency’s assessments and findings on agricultural water, toxic elements in baby food, and sodium levels, and explaining FDA’s reasons for its delayed actions on those issues.  The letter also asks FDA to identify steps it plans to take to improve the “timeliness and rigor” of its food safety enforcement and to ensure that the agency’s “organizational structure supports timely and effective decision-making,” along with listing FDA’s food safety inspections and sampled foods and food packages over the past ten years.

Tax Policy: New Ohio Laws Create Agricultural Lease Requirements and Tax Credits for Beginning Farmer Property Sales
On April 6, 2022, the Ohio legislature passed two bills creating notice requirements for agricultural lease terminations and income tax credits for agricultural asset sales to beginning farmers: HB 397, “Revise the Agricultural Lease Law,” and HB 95, “Allow Income Tax Credits for Beginning Farmers/Related Business.”  HB 397 establishes that, for agricultural lease agreements without a specified termination date, the landlord must provide the tenant with written notice of termination on or before September 1 of the year the lease is to be terminated.  If a landlord provides a tenant with such notice under the law, the date of the lease termination must be the earlier of the harvest completion date or December 31, unless the parties agree otherwise in writing.  HB 95 provisions $10 million over six years to fund income tax credits for agricultural property owners who sell their assets to state-certified beginning farmers and beginning farmers who attend a state-certified financial management program.  Sellers may receive a credit of 3.99% of either the asset’s sale price or gross rental income received, which may be spread over successive years, and beginning farmers may receive a tax credit for the cost of the program.  The law defines a “beginning farmer” as a resident individual in the state who, among other requirements, (a) seeks entry into farming or has been farming for less than ten years in the state of Ohio, (b) is not a “partner, member, shareholder, or trustee of the owner of the agricultural assets” sought for purchase or rental, (c) has a net worth less than $800,000, (d) shows that farming will provide “a significant source” of the individual’s income, and (e) provides most of the daily labor and management on the farm.  Upon signature of Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, HB 95 becomes effective July 18, 2022, and will phase out January 1, 2028, or “on or after the first day of January of the sixth calendar year beginning after the effective date.”

Food Policy: Comment Period Opens on 2025 Dietary Guidelines Scientific Questions
On April 15, 2022, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) published a notice in the Federal Register requesting comments, due May 16, 2022, in response to a list of proposed scientific questions that will guide the upcoming 2025-2030 edition of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (87 FR 22540).  The departments’ notice, also announced by HHS and USDA (and authored by Asst. Sec. of Health Dr. Rachel Levine), begins the five-step process to develop and publish 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines.  The departments’ scientific questions build directly on the 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s future directions (published as part of the committee’s the Scientific Report of the 2020 Dietary Guidelines).  Among several recommendations, the future directions called for future departments to “investigat[e] the relationships between the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and juice during the complementary feeding period and obesity in childhood and other measures of growth, size, and body composition” because the systemic reviews used by the 2020 committee “identified limited evidence about intakes of sugar-sweetened beverages and juices and their relationship with growth, size, and body composition,” a direction that appears in the proposed scientific questions as “What is the relationship between beverage consumption (beverage patterns, dairy milk and milk alternatives, 100% juice, low- or no-calorie sweetened beverages, sugar-sweetened beverages, coffee, tea, water) and (1) growth, size, body composition, risk of overweight and obesity, and weight loss and maintenance?  (2) risk of type 2 diabetes?”

 

CENTER PROGRAMS & RESOURCES

Timely HPAI Resources of Note on Indemnity and Compensation:

1. Process and Procedure

• HPAI Response: Overview of Finance & Administration Procedures (Feb. 4, 2022).
  • This document is the outline of the process to be followed in order to get paid for birds/eggs and potentially virus elimination if not done 100% by USDA APHIS contractors.
  • This document extensively incorporates contents of an LPAI guidance document, titled: VS Guidance 8603.2 Procedures for Indemnity and Compensation Claims in Cases of H5/H7 Low Pathogenicity Avian Influenza Infection in Poultry.
  • Within this document are mentioned forms to be used.  Those forms are either found: (a) directly within VS Guidance 8603.2 discussed above; or (b) found on the APHIS webpage titled, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, under the green drop-down menu titled “Response and Policy Information” and then under the heading “Finance and Administration Processes.”

2. Producer Indemnity (payment for birds and eggs)

• HPAI Response: Poultry Indemnity Valuation (Apr. 12, 2022) – explains the process and how valuations are set
• USDA Indemnity Values for 2022: Commercial Table (Mar. 2022) – the actual published amounts for 2022
• VS Indemnity Values for 2022: Specialty Table (Mar. 2022) – the actual published amounts for 2022

3. Producer Compensation (payment for cleaning and disinfecting, i.e. virus elimination)

• HPAI Virus Elimination: Per-Square-Foot Rates for Floor-Raised Poultry (Sept. 2020 – still current as of 4/14/22). – explains the process, how amounts are set and contains the actual published amounts.
• HPAI Virus Elimination: Per-Cubic-Yard Flat Rates for Table Egg-Laying Bird Barns and Table Egg Storage and Processing Facilities (Sept. 2020- still current as of 4/14/22) – explains the process, how amounts are set and contains the actual published amounts.

New at aglaw.psu.edu:

• Dairy and Dairy Products Law (new Virtual Resource Room).

Agricultural Law Podcasts: 

Episode #210, Federal Court Enjoins Iowa’s March 2019 Ag-Gag Law & Tenth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of ‘Product of the USA’ Meat Labeling Lawsuit (Mar. 23, 2022).

Episode #209, Appropriations Act Provides $1 Million for Cattle Contract Library Pilot Program & FDA Approves Food Use for Genetically Altered Cattle (Mar. 15, 2022).

Episode #208, Federal Court Denies Prop 12 Preliminary Injunction & EPA Denies All Objections to Chlorpyrifos Rule (Mar. 10, 2022).

Top #AgLaw HotLinks Apr. 11–15, 2022

Fertilizer and Food Prices Climb, While Egypt Pays High Price for Wheat; Corn Extends Gains, Farm Policy News

The FDA’s Food Failure, Politico

Food Prices Jump Most on Record as War Sparks Supply Chaos, Bloomberg

Bayer Reaches Settlement Agreement over Roundup, Brownfield

Biden’s EPA Denies 31 Small Refinery Waivers, Farm Progress

Events:

Apr. 26, 2022, noon ET, Quarterly Dairy Legal Webinar. In addition to a round-up of quarterly legal developments, the focus topic will be animal welfare in dairy. Learn more and register.

Apr. 28, 2022, noon-1:30 pm ET, Penn State Extension Webinar, Farmland Preservation Programs and Techniques in Pennsylvania. Center Staff Attorney Brook Duer will be a presenter. Registration.

Apr. 29, 2022, noon ET, Understanding the Basics of Agricultural Labor Laws. This webinar is part of a legal educational series for general practice attorneys and business advisors representing agricultural and rural clients. Learn more and register.

Webinar Series: Legal Planning for Specialty Crop Producers: Understanding Liability Protections, Regulatory Processes and Other Legal Risks.  Free webinar series via Zoom. Registration at any time will entitle you to watch recordings of and attend all sessions, as well as receive the webinar materials.

Webinars 1–3 (Recordings now available to registrants)

• Mar. 9, 2022: Legal Liability Risks from Business Invitees on the Farm. 
• Mar. 23, 2022: Legal Liabilities in Selling Raw and Processed Specialty Crop Products.
• Apr. 6, 2022: Business Structures for Operational Resilience and Liability Avoidance.

Webinars 4–6

• Nov. 16, 2022, noon ET: Licensing and Regulatory Obligations in Selling Raw and Processed Specialty Crop Products.
• Nov. 30, 2022, noon ET: Municipal Law & Zoning for Agritourism / Agritainment, Specialty Crop Processing & Sales.
• Dec. 14, 2022, noon ET: Statutory Protections/Restrictions: Understanding PA’s Ag Area Security, Right-To-Farm, ACRE, and Clean & Green Laws.

We Conserve PA Solar Webinar Series: Registration for the series is available at weconservepa.org. Center Staff Attorney Brook Duer will be a presenter and panelist in this series co-presented with Penn State Extension. Recordings are available to all registrants.

• Mar. 17, 2022, 3–4:30 pm: Managing Grid Scale Solar Development in PA.
• Apr. 5, 2022, 10-11:15 am: Siting Considerations for Solar Development.
• Apr. 19, 2022, 10-11:15 am: Solar Ordinance Development.
• May 3, 2022, 10-11:15 am: Panel Discussion with Series Speakers.

Agricultural Law & Policy Resources of Interest:  

Academic & Government Resources

• Nat’l Ag. Law Ctr., Truth in Labeling Laws(uits)—Update and Recent Developments, Jana Caracciolo (Apr. 12, 2022).
• Nat’l Ag. Law Ctr., Plaintiffs & Pesticides: Negligence Claims in Pesticide Injury Lawsuits, Brigit Rollins (Apr. 14, 2022).
• Law and Tax. Blog, Intergenerational Transfer of the Farm/Ranch Business—The Buy-Sell Agreement, Roger A. McEowen (Apr. 11, 2022).
• Law and Tax. Blog, When Is an Agricultural Activity a Nuisance? (Apr. 14, 2022).
• Md. Risk Mgmt. Educ. Blog, New Online Water Assessment Tool Guides Growers Through Proposed Rule Requirements, Sarah Everhart (Apr. 12, 2022).
• Ohio State Univ. Ext., Charitable Remainder Trust strategy for Retiring Farmers, Robert Moore (Apr. 12, 2022).
• Texas A&M Ag. Law Blog, Federal Court Strikes Down Texas Drone Law, Tiffany Dowell Lashmet (Apr. 11, 2022).
• GM Crops & Food, The State of the ‘GMO’ Debate—Toward an Increasingly Favorable and Less Polarized Media Conversation on Ag-Biotech?, Sarah Evanega, et al. (Mar. 23, 2022).

Media & Industry Resources

• Food Safety Magazine, Food Safety Summit, May 9 – 12, Rosemont, IL. Register.
• American Farm Bureau Federation, Breaking Down the HPAI Outbreak (Apr. 12, 2022).
• Southern Ag Today, On-Farm Cost of Contracting High Path Avian Influenza in a Commercial Broiler Flock, Jordan Shockley (Apr. 13, 2022).
• Science, Policy Reforms For Antibiotic Use Claims In Livestock, Lance B. Price et al. (Apr. 7, 2022).
• Hoard’s Dairyman, Volatility a Factor in Class I Mover Debate, Scott Brown (Apr. 11, 2022).
• WESA, ‘Agriculture is the Culture’: Philly Nonprofit Wants to Reinvent Agriculture Education, Kenny Cooper (Apr. 17, 2022).
• Virginia Mercury, Youngkin Administration Sets Stricter Runoff Rules for Solar Farms, Sarah Vogelsong (Apr. 18, 2022).

Penn State News, Research & Resources

• PSU Ext.,What’s New in Home Food Preservation 2022 (Apr. 12, 2022).
• PSU Ext.,2022 Disease Update: Potential for Apple Scab and Brown Rot Blossom Blight Infection (Apr. 12, 2022).
• PSU Ext.,Poison Hemlock: Facts About this Early Season Weed (Apr. 12, 2022).
• PSU Ext.,Buttercup and Japanese Stiltgrass Control in Pastures (Apr. 12, 2022).
• PSU Ext.,Maintaining Your Spotted Lanternfly Quarantine Compliance (Apr. 12, 2022).
• PSU Ext.,Don’t Forget to Scout for Timothy Mites (Cereal Rust Mites) (Apr. 13, 2022).
• PSU Ext.,Paraquat Safety (Apr. 13, 2022).
• PlantVillage Receives Cisco Foundation Grant to Help Communities Capture Carbon (Apr. 13, 2022).

Weekly Featured Graphics

1. American Farm Bureau Federation, Breaking Down the HPAI Outbreak (Apr. 12, 2022).

2. USGS, Distribution of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5 and H5N1 in North America, 2021/2022 (Apr. 17, 2022)

 

3. Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Pennsylvania Animal Diagnostic Laboratory System (PADLS) Control Zone Address Checker (Apr. 20, 2022). See Ready Reference Guide—Overview of Zones for summary of zone requirements and restrictions.
   Orange = 10km Control Zone    Yellow = 20km Surveillance Zone

Agriculture-Related Legislative Hearings & Reports:

U.S. House Ag. Comm. Hearing, Upcoming Hearing on the Issues Between the Beef Packing Industry, the Cattlemen Ranchers, and the Rising Food Prices, April 27, 2022.

U.S. House Ag. Comm. Hearing, 2022 Review of the Farm Bill: The Role of USDA Programs in Addressing Climate Change, recording and materials (recorded Mar. 16, 2022).

U.S. House Ag. Comm. Report, H. Rept. 117-203 – CATTLE CONTRACT LIBRARY ACT OF 2021 (Dec. 7, 2021).

PA Senate Env. Res. Comm. Hearing, Joint Public Hearing on Economic Impacts of RGGI, recording and testimony (recorded Mar. 29, 2022).

Pennsylvania Farm/Food Employers’ Listserv (PFEL) is a human resources networking group exclusively for farm and food employers. Subscribe by email with “subscribe” in the subject line to pfel-subscribe-request@lists.psu.edu.

FEDERAL ACTIONS—EXECUTIVE & LEGISLATIVE 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE (USDA) PRESS RELEASES:           

Biden Administration Announces Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Wildfire Mitigation Investments in Colorado (Apr. 11, 2022).

Biden-Harris Administration, Department of Agriculture Announce Efforts to Enable Energy Independence by Boosting Homegrown Biofuels (Apr. 12, 2022).

Biden-Harris Administration and U.S. Department of Agriculture Establish New Program to Support Rural Health Care Providers, Invests $43 Million (Apr 13, 2022).

USDA Releases Equity Action Plan (Apr. 14, 2022).

Proposed Scientific Questions to Inform the Development of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025-2030 Available for Public Comment Starting April 15^th (Apr. 14, 2022).

USDA Announces Additional Farm Service Agency and Rural Development State Directors (Apr. 14, 2022).

President Biden, USDA Forest Service Announce more than $238 Million to Support Rural Schools, Roads, Other Services (Apr. 15, 2022).

USDA AGENCY PRESS RELEASES:           

Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)

USDA, Colorado Sign First Cooperative Agreement for the Local Procurement of Food (Apr. 13, 2022).

USDA Announces $9.98 Million in Grants Awarded to Strengthen the Specialty Crop Industry (Apr. 14, 2022).

Agricultural Research Service (ARS)

Fall Seasonal Effects Connected to E. coli Outbreaks in Bagged Romaine (Apr. 12, 2022).

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 

APHIS History Highlights: APHIS and Mexico Take on Deadly Screwworm (Apr. 12, 2022).

USDA Declares a Portion of East Fork State Park in Clermont County, Ohio, Removed from Asian Longhorned Beetle Quarantine (Apr. 15, 2022).

USDA Confirms Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Idaho (Apr. 15, 2022).

USDA Confirms Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Pennsylvania and Utah (Apr. 16, 2022).

Economic Research Service (ERS)

Agricultural Markets in Russia and Ukraine (Apr. 13, 2022).

Farm Service Agency (FSA)

USDA Announces 2022 Cotton Loan Rate Differentials (Apr. 15, 2022).

Food and Nutrition Service (FNS)

Farm to School to Future! (Apr. 11, 2022).

Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) 

Special Alert: Constituent Update – FSIS Extends Deadline for Proposals to Collaborate on Two Risk Assessments (Apr. 11, 2022).

Make Food Safety the Centerpiece of Your Spring Holiday Feast (Apr. 14, 2022).

Constituent Update – April 15, 2022 (Apr. 15, 2022).

Foreign Agriculture Service (FAS) 

Export Sales to China [Corn] (Apr. 11, 2022).

Additional FY 2022 Funds Available for Export Credit Guarantee Program (GSM-102) (Apr. 11, 2022).

Export Sales to China [Soybeans] (Apr. 14, 2022).

Export Sales to China [Soybeans] and Unknown Destinations [Soybeans] (Apr. 15, 2022).

National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)

NASS inducts two former employees into 2022 Hall of Fame (Apr. 14, 2022).

National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)

NIFA Invests Nearly $18M for Small Business-Led Innovations (Apr. 13, 2022).

FEDERAL EXECUTIVE AGENCIES (Federal Register  April 11–15, 2022):            

Agricultural Marketing Service

87 FR 21083 Notice—Comment Period: “Information Collection for USDA/DOJ Complaint Portal: FarmerFairness.gov” (Apr. 11, 2022).

87 FR 21741 Final Rule: “Washington Apricots; Suspension of Reporting and Assessment Requirements” (Apr. 13, 2022).

87 FR 22142 Proposed Rule—Comment Period: “Olives Grown in California; Decreased Assessment Rate” (Apr. 14, 2022).

87 FR 22103 Final Rule: “Increased Assessment Rate for Texas Oranges and Grapefruit” (Apr. 14, 2022).

87 FR 22105 Final Rule: “Increased Assessment Rate for Pistachios” (Apr. 14, 2022).

87 FR 22108 Final Rule: “Decreased Assessment Rate for Pecans Grown in 15 States” (Apr. 14, 2022).

87 FR 22433 Final Rule: “Amendments to the United States Potato Board Membership and Assessment Methods” (Apr. 15, 2022).

Agricultural Research Service

87 FR 21606 Notice—Comment Period: “Notice of Intent to Seek OMB Approval to Collect Information: Forms Pertaining to the Scientific Peer Review of ARS Research Projects; Correction” (Apr. 12, 2022).

Agriculture Department     

87 FR 21084 Notice: “Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Reinstatement [Equal Opportunity Compliance Review Reporting Tool]” (Apr. 11, 2022).

87 FR 21083 Notice: “Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Reinstatement [Special Need Request Under the Plant Protection Act]” (Apr. 11, 2022).

87 FR 21609 Notice: “Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Reinstatement [Multiple National Agricultural Statistics Service Collections]” (Apr. 12, 2022).

87 FR 21608 Notice: “Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Reinstatement [Application and Permit for Non-Federal Commercial Use of Roads, Trails and Areas Restricted by Regulation or Order]” (Apr. 12, 2022).

87 FR 22168 Notice: “Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request [Request for Special Priorities Assistance (Agriculture Priorities and Allocations System (APAS))]” (Apr. 14, 2022).

87 FR 22499 Notice: “Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request Federal-State Supplemental Nutrition Programs Agreement (Form FNS-339)]” (Apr. 15, 2022).

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

87 FR 22168 Notice—Comment Period: “Concurrence with World Organization for Animal Health’s Risk Designation for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy for Ireland” (Apr. 14, 2022).

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

87 FR 21123 Notice—Comment Period: “Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection Renewal; Comment Request [Loans in Areas Having Special Flood Hazards]” (Apr. 11, 2022).

Federal Emergency Management Agency

87 FR 22550 Notice: “Final Flood Hazard Determinations [for Multiple Areas]” (Apr. 15, 2022).

87 FR 22549 Notice: “Final Flood Hazard Determinations [for Multiple Areas]” (Apr. 15, 2022).

87 FR 22551 Notice—Comment Period: “Proposed Flood Hazard Determinations [California]” (Apr. 15, 2022).

87 FR 22547 Notice: “Changes in Flood Hazard Determinations [Multiple Areas]” (Apr. 15, 2022).

87 FR 22543 Notice: “Changes in Flood Hazard Determinations [Multiple Areas]” (Apr. 15, 2022).

87 FR 22543 Notice: “Proposed Flood Hazard Determinations for Chesterfield County, Virginia (All Jurisdictions) [Withdrawal]” (Apr. 15, 2022).

Fish and Wildlife Service

87 FR 21783 Final Rule: “Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Threatened Species Status for Streaked Horned Lark with Section 4(d) Rule” (Apr. 13, 2022).

87 FR 22226 Notice—Comment Period: “Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Draft Recovery Plan for the Mexican Wolf, Second Revision” (Apr. 14, 2022).

Food and Drug Administration

87 FR 21018 Final Rule: “Food Additives Permitted in Feed and Drinking Water of Animals; Methyl Esters of Conjugated Linoleic Acid” (Apr. 11, 2022).

87 FR 21069 Proposed Rule: “Anitox Corporation; Filing of Food Additive Petition (Animal Use)” (Apr. 11, 2022).

87 FR 21126 Notice—Comment Period: “Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for Office of Management and Budget Review; Comment Request; Foreign Supplier Verification Programs for Food Importers” (Apr. 11, 2022).

87 FR 22212 Notice—Comment Period: “Compounding Animal Drugs from Bulk Drug Substances; Guidance for Industry; Availability” (Apr. 14, 2022).

87 FR 22222 Notice: “Lists of Bulk Drug Substances for Compounding: Office Stock Drugs for Use in Nonfood-Producing Animals or Drugs for Use in Food-Producing Animals or Free-Ranging Wildlife Species; Request for Nominations” (Apr. 14, 2022).

Food Safety and Inspection Service

87 FR 21610 Notice: “National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection; Committee and Charter Reestablish” (Apr. 12, 2022).

International Trade Administration

87 FR 22184 Notice: “Raw Honey from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Final Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Final Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances” (Apr. 14, 2022).

87 FR 22188 Notice: “Raw Honey from India: Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Final Negative Determination of Critical Circumstances” (Apr. 14, 2022).

87 FR 22182 Notice: “Raw Honey from Brazil: Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value” (Apr. 14, 2022).

87 FR 22179 Notice: “Raw Honey from Argentina: Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Final Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances” (Apr. 14, 2022).

Land Management Bureau

87 FR 21668 Notice: “Filing of Plats of Survey: Alaska” (Apr. 12, 2022).

Rural Business-Cooperative Service

87 FR 22171 Notice—Comment Period: “Notice of Solicitation of Applications for the Socially Disadvantaged Groups Grant” (Apr. 14, 2022).

87 FR 22499 Notice: “Notice of Application Deadline Extension [to May 19, 2022] for the Rural Innovation Stronger Economy (RISE) Grant Program for Fiscal Year 2022” (Apr. 15, 2022).

Surface Transportation Board

87 FR 22009 Notice—Comment Period: “Urgent Issues in Freight Rail Service [Public Hearing Apr. 26 and 27, 2022]” (Apr. 13, 2022).

Susquehanna River Basin Commission

87 FR 22011 Notice: “Projects Approved for Minor Modifications [in March]” (Apr. 13, 2022).

87 FR 22010 Notice: “Projects Approved for Consumptive Uses of Water [in March]” (Apr. 13, 2022).

87 FR 22012 Notice—Comment Period: “Public Hearing [on May 5, 2022]” (Apr. 13, 2022).

87 FR 22012 Notice: “Grandfathering (GF) Registration Notice [in March]” (Apr. 13, 2022).

U.S. HOUSE AGRICULTURE COMMITTEE:

H.R.7456 “SHIP IT Act [‘To address the supply chain backlog in the freight network at United States ports, and for other purposes.’]” Referred to the House Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials (Apr. 8, 2022).

H.R.7498 “TEMP Act [‘To amend the Federal Crop Insurance Act to direct the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation to conduct research and development on frost or cold weather insurance, and for other purposes.’]” Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture (Apr. 11, 2022).

H.R.7513 “To establish a Commission on the Federal Regulation of Cannabis to study a prompt and plausible pathway to the Federal regulation of cannabis, and for other purposes.” Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the House Committees on the Judiciary, Ways and Means, Agriculture, and Financial Services. . . (Apr. 14, 2022).

U.S. SENATE COMMITTEE AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY:

No relevant actions.

STATE ACTIONS—EXECUTIVE & LEGISLATIVE 

PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE PRESS RELEASES:           

Wolf Administration Investments Promote Agriculture Conservation, Strengthen Pennsylvania’s Commitment to Chesapeake Bay Watershed (Apr. 13, 2022).

Pennsylvania Invests $9.7 Million To Protect 40 Farms In 19 Counties from Development; Leverages $735,170 In Federal Dollars to Preserve More Farms (Apr. 14, 2022).

Agriculture Department Orders Temporary Ban on Poultry, Egg Exhibitions to Protect Poultry Industry from Avian Influenza (Apr. 14, 2022).

PA Department of Agriculture Confirms First Case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Lancaster County (Apr. 16, 2022).

PENNSYLVANIA EXECUTIVE AGENCIES (Pa. Bulletin Vol. 52, No. 16—April 16, 2022): 

Department of Agriculture

52 Pa.B. 2223 Notice: “General Quarantine Order; Cancellation of Exhibitions of Poultry and Their Hatching Eggs Due to Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza.”

52 Pa.B. 2221 Notice: “Bureau of Ride and Measurement Standards.”

Department of Environmental Protection 

52 Pa.B. 2226 Notice: “Applications for NPDES and WQM Permits Under the Clean Streams Law and Federal Clean Water Act.”

52 Pa.B. 2292 Notice: “Growing Greener Plus Grants; Notice of Availability.”

52 Pa.B. 2293 Notice: “Watershed Planning and Restoration Grants through the Section 319 Nonpoint Source Management Program; Notice of Availability.”

Executive Board

52 Pa.B. 2218 Statement of Policy: “Reorganization of the Department of Agriculture.”

PENNSYLVANIA LEGISLATURE:

HB 221 “An Act amending the act. . . entitled “An act authorizing the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the local government units thereof to preserve, acquire or hold land for open space uses,” further providing for local taxing options.” Presented to the Governor (Apr. 13, 2022).

SB 962 “An Act establishing the Rural Coworking and Innovation Center Grant Program; and providing for requirements and imposing duties on the Department of Community and Economic Development.” Referred to Commerce [House] (Apr. 14, 2022).

HB 1984 “An Act amending the. . . Agricultural Area Security Law, further providing for purchase of agricultural conservation easements.” Third consideration and final passage (199-0) [House] (Apr. 12, 2022).

SB 1167 “An Act amending Title 12 (Commerce and Trade) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, providing for legitimate cannabis-related business.” Third consideration and final passage (46-3) [Senate] (Apr. 13, 2022).

HB 223 “An Act providing for the creation of keystone opportunity dairy zones to facilitate the economic development of Pennsylvania’s dairy industry; authorizing expenditures; providing tax exemptions, tax deductions, tax abatements and tax credits; creating additional obligations of the Commonwealth and local governmental units; and prescribing powers and duties of certain State and local departments, agencies and officials.” Third consideration and final passage (198-0) [House] (Apr. 13, 2022).

HB 224 “An Act amending the. . . Milk Marketing Law, in purpose, short title and definitions, further providing for definitions and construction; in general powers of the board, providing for collection of premiums; in prices of milk, providing for board established premiums and further providing for cooperatives; and, in moneys and expenses of board, further providing for Milk Marketing Fund and for payment and providing for audits.” Third consideration and final passage (198-0) [House] (Apr. 13, 2022).

HB 1847 “An Act amending the. . . Milk Marketing Law, further providing for title of act; in purpose, short title and definitions, further providing for definitions; in organization of the board, further providing for appointment and terms of members and quorum; in licenses of milk dealers, further providing for grounds for refusal, suspension or revocation; in moneys and expenses of board, further providing for expenses and for payment; and, in saving provisions, repealing provisions relating to Joint Study Committee.” Third consideration and final passage (197-1) [House] (Apr. 13, 2022).

HB 2397 “An Act authorizing the provision or sale of Pennsylvania milk in Pennsylvania schools.” Third consideration and final passage (196-2) [House] (Apr. 13, 2022).

HB 2456 “An Act amending the. . . Milk Marketing Law, in licenses of milk dealers, further providing for penalties in lieu of suspension.” Third consideration and final passage (183-15) [House] (Apr. 13, 2022).

HB 2457 “An Act amending the. . . the Milk Marketing Law, in weighing and testing, further providing for certified testers and for certified weighers and samplers.” Third consideration and final passage (198-0) [House] (Apr. 13, 2022).

SB 1181 “An Act authorizing the provision or sale of Pennsylvania milk in Pennsylvania schools.” Referred to Appropriations [Senate] (Apr. 11, 2022).

SB 749 “An Act amending the. . . the Medical Marijuana Act, in preliminary provisions, further providing for definitions; in patients, further providing for prohibitions; and, in miscellaneous provisions, further providing for protections for patients and caregivers.” First Consideration [Senate] (Apr. 12, 2022).

SB 1121 “An Act amending the. . . Human Services Code, in public assistance, further providing for uniformity in administration of assistance and regulations as to assistance [for SNAP].” First Consideration [Senate] (Apr. 12, 2022).

SB 1124 “An Act amending the. . . Human Services Code, in public assistance, further providing for uniformity in administration of assistance and regulations as to assistance [for SNAP].” First Consideration [Senate] (Apr. 12, 2022).

SB 1188 “An Act providing for patient access to diagnostics and treatments for Lyme disease and related tick-borne illnesses; and requiring health care policies to provide certain coverage.” First Consideration [Senate] (Apr. 12, 2022).

HB 2210 “An Act amending the. . . Abandoned and Blighted Property Conservatorship Act, further providing for definitions [Adding Land Banks to Conservatorship Law].” Removed from the Table [House] (Apr. 13, 2022).

HB 2520 “An Act amending Title 3 (Agriculture) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, in race horse industry reform, further providing for State Horse Racing Commission.” Referred to Agriculture and Rural Affairs [House] (Apr. 14, 2022).

Written by:
Audry Thompson—Research Assistant
Noah Gochnauer—Research Assistant
Brook Duer—Staff Attorney