THIS WEEK IN
Federal Policy News
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Ocean Shipping Reform Act Heads to President's Desk |
On Monday, June 13th, the House passed the Senate-approved S. 3580, the Ocean Shipping Reform Act by a vote of 369 to 42. The bill now heads to the president where he has indicated he will sign this afternoon. AFBF President, Zippy Duvall is expected to be present for the signing, representing all state farm bureaus across the nation. California Farm Bureau welcomes the enactment of this bill to help alleviate supply chain challenges and looks forward to the swift implementation of the provisions by the Federal Maritime Commission and the administration.
The Ocean Shipping Reform Act would:
- Require ocean carriers to certify that late fees —known in maritime parlance as “detention and demurrage” charges—comply with federal regulations or face penalties;
- Shift burden of proof regarding the reasonableness of “detention or demurrage” charges from the invoiced party to the ocean carrier;
- Prohibit ocean carriers from unreasonably declining shipping opportunities for U.S. exports, as determined by the FMC in new required rulemaking;
- Require ocean common carriers to report to the FMC each calendar quarter on total import/export tonnage and 20-foot equivalent units (loaded/empty) per vessel that makes port in the United States;
- Authorize the FMC to self-initiate investigations of ocean common carrier’s business practices and apply enforcement measures, as appropriate; and
- Establish new authority for the FMC to register shipping exchanges.
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Happening Today - California Farm Bureau's Western Region WOTUS Roundtable |
A reminder that later today, the U.S. EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will host California Farm Bureau’s western region Waters of the United States roundtable from 2:00 to 4:30 PM EDT. The roundtable can be viewed via livestream here. The session will focus on the geographic impacts of the agencies’ proposed Waters of the United States (WOTUS) Proposed Rule on the West. The agencies previously announced the selection of ten roundtables in February 2022 with California Farm Bureau's roundtable proposal selected as one of the two roundtables representing the western region. The roundtable will be chaired by President Jamie Johansson and include stakeholders from a variety of organizations representing perspectives from agriculture, conservation, development, drinking and wastewater management, Tribal nations, state government and more.
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Reminder: Respond to AFBF's Current Drought Survey |
With the West and a growing number of Midwest states continuing to experience severe drought conditions, American Farm Bureau Federation has released a third iteration of their Assessing Western Drought Survey. The survey is open to all members; both those who took previous versions of the survey as well as those who did not. The data collected from this survey will be aggregated and summarized by American Farm Bureau Federation staff economists and be utilized to inform short-term disaster relief needs as well as long-term policy proposals aimed at assisting agriculture with drought preparedness, resilience, and response.
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CAFB Submits Letters on Public Lands Grazing Legislation |
American Farm Bureau Federation, California Farm Bureau, and other western state farm bureaus submitted a letter to the Senate Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests and Mining on two bills focusing on public lands grazing. The letter voiced opposition to S. 2980, the Wildlife-Livestock Conflict Resolution Act, which seeks to permanently retire grazing permits and allotments. The letter simultaneously voiced support for S. 1264, the RANCH Act, which makes common-sense changes to federal law that will improve management of public lands grazing and support rural communities. Specifically, the bill would extend the period of grazing permits/leases for up to 20-years and provide funding for rangeland health and resiliency projects. With much of the West in extreme drought, the letter emphasized that flexibility for the use of vacant grazing allotments and permitting is essential. |
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Final Week to Comment on SEC Climate Proposed Rule |
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is currently seeking public comment until Friday, June 17 on a proposed rule that would amend its rules under the Securities Act of 1933 and Securities Exchange Act of 1933 that would require registrants to provide certain climate related information in their registration statements and annual reports. The proposed rule would require registrant companies to report climate related risks that are reasonably likely to have a material impact on its business, results of operations, or financial condition. The required information about climate-related risks would also include disclosure of a registrant’s greenhouse gas emissions, which have become a commonly used metric to assess a registrant’s exposure to such risks.
Currently, farmers and ranchers are not considered registrants or otherwise subject in any way to the jurisdiction and oversight of the SEC. However, the proposed rule would change this by extending reporting requirements for public companies to report on Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions. Scope 3 emissions are emissions that result from activities from assets not owned or controlled by an organization but contribute to its value chain including farms and ranches. As a result, the proposed rule would force disclosure of private information, create burdensome reporting requirements for family farms and ranches who sell into supply chains and result in multiple, new sources of substantial costs and liabilities.
Click here to write the SEC in opposition to the proposed rule today!
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USDA to Launch Pilot Program to Strengthen H-2A Recruitment in Northern Triangle |
Late last week, the USDA announced their plans to kickstart a $65 million pilot program aimed at expanding the usage of H-2A workers from “Northern Triangle” countries (Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador). H-2A visas help provide a much-needed influx of agricultural workers here in the United States, now totaling over 300,000 annually. Although 82 countries participate in the program, Mexico accounts for 93% of all workers. Citing the need for more workers in the industry, the USDA hopes the pilot will pave a path forward for other countries to expand their interest and involvement in the H-2A process.
The USDA also revealed that they would be partnering with the United Farm Workers (UFW) through a technical assistance cooperative agreement in order to help address potential ethical and fair treatment concerns in the H-2A hiring process. This likely stems from a Department of Justice investigation revealed in November of last year in which several employers in Georgia allegedly committed human trafficking and forced labor crimes. The case has brought some new attention to H-2A hiring from worker safety advocates and federal officials. It remains to be seen how involved the UFW will be involved in this pilot, but we will continue to update on this program as we learn more.
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Farm Service Agency Accepting Nominations for Local County Committees |
Yesterday, the USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) announced that they would be accepting new nominations for farmers and ranchers interested in serving on local county committees. These committees help serve as a direct connection between the USDA and farmers and ranchers across the country, providing invaluable feedback on how the myriad of agency and subagency programs impact agricultural producers. If elected, members serve for three-year terms and work closely in conjunction with their local FSA staff and other committee members. Nominations will be open through August 1st. For more information, please click here.
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House Agriculture Holds Pair of Farm Bill Review Hearings |
Over the past week, the House Agriculture Committee held a pair of hearings in their review of the previous Farm Bill and its impacts on our industry. This included a review of Titles I (Commodities) and XI (Crop Insurance) as well as a review on USDA non-SNAP nutrition programs. The latter of these follows up on a hearing last week on the SNAP portion of the Farm Bill. Nearly three quarters of all Farm Bill funds are dedicated to nutrition programs, meaning it receives quite a bit of attention as preparations are made for the next iteration.
For Title XI, many legislators have raised interest in expanding crop insurance more broadly. Instead of relying on ad hoc disaster aid programs, an expansion of covered commodities could help bridge the gap in billions in lost crops around the country. It remains to be seen what proposals might be put forward as the work continues behind the scenes; however, complicating matters are the potential prospects of a House (and even Senate) flip in party control following the Midterm elections. If Republicans gain control of either chamber, it could mean a complete reworking of the Committee’s work, with new hearings to follow.
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Sara Arsenault
Director of Federal Policy
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Matthew Viohl
Federal Policy, Associate Director
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Erin Hutson
Federal Policy, Consultant
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