The community battle over San Luis Obispo County's redistricting might finally be reaching a truce. After more than a year in court, SLO County and two citizen groups announced a settlement agreement on March 24 that sets the stage for the county to repeal and replace its disputed Patten map, which made dramatic changes to the county's supervisorial district boundaries.

The County of San Luis Obispo's Board of Supervisors has agreed to a settlement with a group of plaintiffs that had challenged the legal compliance of supervisorial district maps adopted in December of 2021 and used in the Board's elections in 2022.

CALIFORNIA - On Friday, March 24, Gov. Gavin Newsom met farmers in Yolo County to announce his move to ease drought restrictions. Newsom rolled back some drought emergency provisions that are no longer needed due to current water conditions, while maintaining other measures that support regions and communities still facing water supply challenges, and that continue building up long-term water resilience.

PUBLISHED ON SACRAMENTO - The California State Board of Food and Agriculture will discuss current flooding impacts to local communities and available USDA disaster assistance programs at its upcoming meeting on April 4th. The meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 4, 2023, from 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

PUBLISHED ON WASHINGTON - Almost three-quarters of Americans say that not reauthorizing the farm bill in 2023 would have a significant impact on the country, according to a new poll from the American Farm Bureau Federation. The survey explores the public's awareness of the farm bill, its impact, and priorities for funding in the legislation.

Last week, two banks were in the process of collapsing, and state and federal regulators took them over. On Sunday, the Federal Reserve Bank announced more liberal lending to all banks to help them weather the decline in the prices of bonds they hold as bank reserves.

WASHINGTON, March 31, 2023 - U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that USDA is accepting applications starting on April 1 for $1 billion in grants to help agricultural producers and rural small businesses invest in renewable energy systems and make energy-efficiency improvements.

The Biden administration cannot be trusted to spend tax dollars prudently, and Congress ought to block the USDA's access to the $30 billion reserve fund it used to launch a climate mitigation initiative, said the chair of a House Appropriations subcommittee on Thursday.

With California enduring record-breaking rain and snow and Gov. Gavin Newsom recently easing restrictions on groundwater recharge, interest in "managed aquifer recharge" has never been higher. This process - by which floodwater is routed to sites such as farm fields so that it percolates into the aquifer - holds great promise as a tool to replenish depleted groundwater stores across the state.

As California's domestic citrus season reaches its peak, Fowler, Calif.-based Bee Sweet Citrus will have ample supply of grapefruit, lemons and navel oranges. "Harvest of our D3 (desert region) grapefruit will be wrapping up soon, and we'll begin to move into the Central Valley (D1) once that's done," Bee Sweet Citrus Director of Harvesting and Grower Relations Randy Stucky said in a news release.

Fresh lemon per capita consumption has increased substantially in the past decade, USDA statistics reveal. According to the agency, retail per capita availability of lemons jumped from 3.3 pounds in 2011 to 4.7 pounds in 2020, a gain of 42% during that time.

We know avocados are popular these days. But you need to know more details for your ordering needs, marketing plans and general strategy. Like, what kind of are we talking about here? What size, what packaging and what about conventional versus organic? And how does this year (so far) compare to last year?

Since last fall, Central Valley agricultural workers have had less work due to prolonged rain storms and the resulting flooding. But undocumented immigrants are ineligible for unemployment insurance, disaster relief and many other safety net services.

Here is the recipe that the U.S. Department of Labor used to create the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) Methodology for the Temporary Employment of H-2A Nonimmigrants in Non-Range Occupations in the United States final rule. Step one: Copy the proposed rule of the same name released on Dec. 1, 2021.

The Department of Labor's Office of Foreign Labor Certification invites interested stakeholders to participate in a webinar that provides an overview of the new Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) Rule and gives the stakeholder community an opportunity to familiarize itself with the regulatory changes.

(KTXL) - A lawsuit filed by Forest Service Employees For Environmental Ethics (FSEEE) is seeking to see the United States Forest Service end the use of aerial firefighting retardants claiming it is not in line with the Clean Water Act.

For most Californians, the sight of aircraft spewing neon pink liquid over flaming trees and brush has become a hallmark of aggressive wildfire suppression campaigns - if not a potent symbol of government's struggle to control increasingly destructive forest fires.

Environment Monique Limón's Senate Bill 675 Would Integrate Livestock Grazing into California's Existing Wildfire Prevention Programs Santa Barbara is no stranger to prescribed wildfire prevention. For years, the county has used prescribed burning and chipping to clear away the fine, dry brush that acts as fuel for wildfires.

Aboutnuylove/Getty Images When the avian flu crisis hit the poultry flocks, both farmers and consumers felt the impact. According to the BBC, bird flu can see annual spikes in the autumn yet decreases in spring and summer.

Taste the diversity of the Downtown Paso Robles Wine District. 16 wineries pouring 11 Paso Robles AVAs with gourmet food pairings. Register here.

Vine mealybug occurs in all major California production areas. In California, the vine mealybug feeds predominantly on grapevines and is a damaging pest capable of rapidly transmitting grape leafroll viruses. This pest does not respect the borders of vineyards and will cross over to other vineyards, bringing viruses with them.

San Luis Obispo County Fire and CAL FIRE will be conducting live structure fire training on Division Street in Nipomo the weeks of Apr. 3 and Apr....

Hi WRAC and Water Resources Stakeholders, The next WRAC meeting will be at 1:30pm on Wednesday, 4/5/2023 and will be held in-person at the SLO City/County Library Community Room. A Zoom livestream will also be available for the public and those who are unable to attend in-person.

A barrage of storms has resurrected what was once the largest body of freshwater west of the Mississippi River, setting the stage for a disaster this spring. Roads and farms are being flooded outside Corcoran, Calif., where the vast Tulare Lake once existed. Credit...

Just a few months ago, millions in California were living under mandatory water conservation rules. The driest three years on record had transformed the state, depleted reservoirs and desiccated landscapes. Then came a deluge. A dozen atmospheric river storms and several "bomb cyclones" have broken levees and buried mountain communities in snow, but they have also delivered a boon.

SAN FRANCISCO - California and its plentiful farm fields are soaking wet. Asparagus farmers can't get into fields to harvest the tender green stalks. Tomato growers have greenhouses bursting with seedlings but it's too wet to transplant them. The planting timeline for lettuce keeps getting moved as fields stay drenched.