Animal Welfare
Agricultural Law Weekly Review—January 20, 2026
Register Now! Educational programming for January:
Wed. Jan. 21, AgWorks: Wage and Hour Laws—Requirements and Exemptions
Fri. Jan. 23, Understanding the Basics of Pennsylvania’s Seasonal Farm Labor Law (Atty CLE)
Tues. Jan. 27, Quarterly Dairy Legal Webinar: Standards of Identity—Regulations & Current Issues (Atty CLE)
Pesticides/Herbicides: U.S. Supreme Court Grants Certiorari to FIFRA Preemption Case 🌾
On January 16, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a petition for a writ of certiorari in Monsanto v. Durnell limited to the question of “[w]hether the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act [FIFRA] preempts a label-based failure-to-warn claim where EPA has not required […]
Agricultural Law Weekly Review—January 13, 2026
Register Now! Educational programming for January:
Jan. 21, AgWorks: Wage and Hour Laws—Requirements and Exemptions
Jan. 23, Understanding the Basics of Pennsylvania’s Seasonal Farm Labor Law (Atty CLE)
Jan. 27, Quarterly Dairy Legal Webinar: Standards of Identity—Regulations & Current Issues (Atty CLE)
Food Policy: USDA, HHS Publish Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2025–2030 🌾
On January 7, 2026, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) published the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030 directing Americans to “eat real food,” along with an accompanying website, realfood.gov. The new dietary guidelines recommend that people […]
Agricultural Law Weekly Review—October 21, 2025
Next Week:
Tues. Oct. 28: AgWorks: Legal Authority to Work in the U.S. and Other Pre-Employment Screening Processes
Fri. Oct. 31: Understanding Immigration Compliance: I-9s, Audits and ICE Raids (FREE Attorney CLE!)
Water Quality: Maryland Announces Conowingo Dam Settlement Agreement 🌾
On October 2, 2025, Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), Lower Susquehanna Riverkeeper Association, Waterkeepers Chesapeake, and Constellation Energy announced a settlement agreement with Constellation Energy to “fund and implement operational improvements and environmental projects at the Conowingo Dam.” The settlement agreement is part of a revised Water Quality Certification, also issued by MDE. […]
Agricultural Law Weekly Review—July 29, 2025
2025 Agricultural Law Symposium, Thurs. Sept. 18, in-person at University Park.
6 CLE credits for PA Attorneys, $150 Early Bird Registration available until Aug. 29!
Industrial Hemp: Eighth Circuit Holds Arkansas Hemp Law Not Preempted by 2018 Farm Bill, Vacates Preliminary Injunction 🌾
On June 24, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit issued an opinion vacating the district court’s preliminary injunction and holding that the 2018 Farm Bill does not preempt Arkansas Act 629, which “criminaliz[ed] many . . . hemp products,” but specifically “does not prohibit the continuous transportation through Arkansas of [hemp].” Bio Gen […]
Agricultural Law Weekly Review—July 22, 2025
This Friday July 25 at Noon: Understanding the Basics of ADA Compliance for Agritourism Operations—Free Attorney PACLE!
International Trade: Commerce Department Withdraws from 2019 Mexican Fresh Tomato Agreement, Issues Antidumping Duties 🌾
On July 17, 2025, the U.S. International Trade Administration (ITA) Department of Commerce published in the Federal Register a notice (90 FR 33363) that the agency is “withdrawing from and terminating” its 2019 Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation on Fresh Tomatoes from Mexico and issuing an antidumping order on fresh tomatoes from Mexico. Also announced by ITA, the agency states that “[a]ntidumping duties are […]
Agricultural Law Weekly Review—April 22, 2025
This week—Fri. Apr. 25: Understanding the Basics of PA Ag Exemptions for Inheritance Tax and Other Real Estate Transfers
National Agricultural Policy: USDA Cancels ‘Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities,’ Announces ‘Advancing Markets for Producers’ 🌾
On April 14, 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that the agency is cancelling its Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities (PCSC) program, initiated in 2022 under the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act. USDA states that “the majority of” PCSC “projects had . . . high administration fees which in many instances provided less than half of the federal funding directly to farmers” and that the […]
Agricultural Law Weekly Review—March 26, 2025
This Week: Fri. Mar. 28, 2025, Understanding the Basics of the Clean Water Act & Ag: Impaired Waters & TMDL Process
National Agricultural Policy: USDA Announces $10 Billion for Direct ECAP Payments 🌾
On March 18, 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced (PDF) that the agency “is issuing up to $10 billion directly to agricultural producers through the Emergency Commodity Assistance Program (ECAP) for the 2024 crop year” to “help agricultural producers mitigate the impacts of increased input costs . . . falling commodity prices . . . and ‘market uncertainty.’” According to the announcement, the […]
Agricultural Law Weekly Review—February 4, 2025
National Agricultural Policy: Temporary Restraining Order Issued Against Federal Funding Pause After Memo Rescission 🌾
On January 27, 2025, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued memorandum M-25-13 directing “Federal agencies [to] . . . temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance . . . including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.” The next day, on January 28, two separate complaints were filed seeking an injunction against the memorandum: one filed by several interest groups in the […]
Agricultural Law Weekly Review—January 28, 2025
Agribusiness: Supreme Court Stays BOI Injunction But Reporting Requirements Still Paused 🌾
On January 23, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion staying the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas’s December 5, 2025 injunction in Texas Top Cop Shop v. Garland and again reinstating the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) and the act’s Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting requirements. James R. McHenry, III, Acting Attorney General, v. Texas Top Cop Shop, No. 24A653. However, another nationwide injunction of the law, issued in a separate case on January 7, 2025, is still effective. Smith v. United […]
Agricultural Law Weekly Review—November 5, 2024
Pesticides/Herbicides: Massachusetts State Court Grants Summary Judgment for Monsanto on FIFRA Preemption 🌾
On October 21, 2024, the Essex County Superior Court of Massachusetts issued a memorandum and order granting summary judgment to Monsanto/Bayer on the issue of preemption, finding that the plaintiff’s state law failure to warn claim was preempted by the labeling requirements of the Federal Insecticide and Fungicide Act (FIFRA), which “provides that a state shall not impose . . . any requirements for labeling or packaging in addition to or different from those required under” FIFRA. Cardillo v. Monsanto, No. 2177CV00462. The court stated that “while […]
