USDA also offers disaster assistance programs, which is especially important to livestock, fruit and vegetable, specialty and perennial crop producers who have fewer risk management options. It's critical to keep accurate records to document all losses following this devastating cold weather event.

Seven years of negotiations over the sale of Pioneer Park to the state of California are close to resolution after the Paso Robles City Council's recent approval of a new agreement between the parties. The decision met with raucous applause from attendees at the Dec. 20 council meeting.

The National Weather Service has issued a FLASH FLOOD WARNING for SLO County until 4:45 pm. This is a dangerous and life-threatening situation. Do not attempt to travel unless you are leaving an area subject to flooding or evacuation. Highway Info: US 101 NB is closed at Mariposa Reina due to debris flow north of that location.

The Coastal San Luis Resource Conservation District (CSLRCD) is committed to restoring and conserving the diverse coastal and inland habitats and ecosystem services throughout our District. We offer interesting and challenging work that truly makes a difference in our community and a flexible work environment.

The fierce campaigning, vicious attack ads, and bitter recounts of 2022 made way for joyous smiles, thunderous applause, and a peaceful changing of the guard at the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors' first meeting of 2023. ...

Do you own, operate, or dispatch heavy-duty trucks in or to California? Then you need to know about the California Air Resources Board's (CARB) upcoming requirement to regularly test the emission control system of nearly every truck operating within California, regardless of where the tucks owner lives or where the truck is based.

Lea este artículo en español. State governments are modeled after the federal government. According to the U.S. Constitution, they must uphold a "republican form" of government. Typically, that means having three branches: the executive, the legislative and the judicial.

Just as the work of feeding our nation begins on the farm, we believe that's where the policy shaping our industry should begin as well. That's why AFBF's work in Washington is driven by the policy priorities set directly by our farm and ranch family members.

For many, 2022 was a year of change and transition. As we all thankfully watched the worst of the pandemic pass, new challenges arose, especially in farm country, as post-pandemic changes in consumer behavior, global supply chains, and monetary policy caused major shifts in the economy.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republican Kevin McCarthy was elected House speaker on a historic post-midnight 15th ballot early Saturday, overcoming holdouts from his own ranks and floor tensions that boiled over after a chaotic week that tested the new GOP majority's ability to govern.

While in recent decades public agricultural research and development (R&D) funding in the United States has trended downward, several other major trading partners have increased their funding. The European Union's expenditures have grown since 2000, as have the expenditures in India and Brazil.

The California Farm Service Agency (FSA) is hiring six full time County Executive Director Positions. Applications must be completed through USAJOBs no later than close of business January 9th, 2022. If you know of someone who might be interested, please share this information with them: Los Angeles/Yreka: USAJOBS - Job Announcement Modoc/Fresno/Tulare/Willows: USAJOBS - Job Announcement Contact Danielle LeRoux at 530-792-5543 if you have specific questions regarding the position.

The Central Coast is on the cusp of big changes regarding green energy production, but the transition will take time. Currently, state, local, and PG&E officials are discussing how to keep energy flowing from Diablo Canyon Power Plant.

A bomb cyclone hit California this week, knocking out power, downing trees, and dumping massive amounts of water. Some California residents are watching this precious H20 wash away and wondering, why can't we save the water for times when we desperately need it?

California's prayers for rain have been answered. And then some. The Golden State's produce growers were dealing with huge volumes of rain in the first week of 2023. National reports on Jan. 4 forecasted imminent new rainfall volumes from a "bomb cyclone" approaching California's coastline.

By Ching Lee If current projections hold, California acreage devoted to strawberries will break a new record in 2023. Farmers are planting more strawberries this year "to meet record consumer demand," according to the California Strawberry Commission. Despite inflationary pressures, Americans continue to put strawberries in their shopping carts, with 71% of U.S.

U.S. farms sold more than $11 billion worth of certified organic commodities in 2021, an increase of 13 percent over the 2019 total of $9.9 billion, according to numbers released by the National Agricultural Statistics Service. And nowhere was that more evident than in California.

Between 2000 and 2022, the real (inflation-adjusted) hourly wage rate of hired farm workers increased by 28 percent. Growth in the average wage rate of hired farm workers during that period outpaced hourly wage growth of nonfarm workers by 11 percentage points.

By Caleb Hampton Several new California laws, which went into effect New Year's Day, impact farm operations and agricultural production in the state. The new policies relate to a range of issues, including agricultural exports, pest control, water and irrigation, agricultural vehicles, labor unions and more. As of Jan.

Far-reaching new laws seek to better working conditions for a broad swath of Californians in 2023 from white-collar employees to blue-collar farm laborers, fast-food servers and construction workers. Measures expanding family leave, providing for bereavement leave and mandating pay transparency are among lawmakers' "incredibly productive" record of accomplishment, said Mariko Yoshihara, legislative counsel and policy director for the California Employment Lawyers Assn.

California farmers employing 25 or fewer workers are about to get their first experience with overtime pay if they keep their crews in the field beyond a set number of hours per day or per week.

The Farmer's Exchange Online Edition is the place to go for agriculture news and events, your source for auctions of all varieties in the northern Indiana, Southwestern Michigan, and parts of Ohio and Illinois. Featuring online classified ads and farm equipment listings.

Service problems at Union Pacific Corp. have sparked a dispute between the railroad and one of the country's biggest chicken processors, which says the lives of millions of birds are endangered by repeated delays in the delivery of corn.

LA Times reports - Winemaker finds himself managing other people's expectations of what it means to be a Latino winery owner - Five years [...]

Soil health can be improved with cover crops, reduced tillage, and organic amendments like compost but growers do not always know how specific factors like compost rate and source impact soil quality.

Recent rain is good news for local wineries. The hills at Tablas Creek Vineyard are turning bright green after recent rain. A viticulturist at Tablas Creek says that the wet start to the year is welcome news after three dry years. "So far, it's been amazing. It's exceeded all of our expectations.

The Biden administration today finalized its definition of which wetlands and waterways are protected by the Clean Water Act. The rule from EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers largely revives a definition of "waters of the United States," or WOTUS, coined during the Reagan-era, updated to accommodate limits the Supreme Court has placed on federal jurisdiction during the intervening 36 years.

In the face of its worst drought in centuries, California is finally getting around to regulating its groundwater use. As an agricultural economist who studies water regulation in California, I think this is a unique chance to change the way we price groundwater and protect this scarce resource.

After two years of construction, Morro Bay's Water Reclamation Facility is ahead of schedule. According to Greg Kwolek, director of Public Works, the expected completion date for the facility was March 23, 2023, but the city already hit that deadline set by the Regional Water Quality Control Board.

The first 2023 snow survey from the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) demonstrated a strong start to the year. DWR reported that Phillips Station has a snow depth of 55.5 inches and a snow water content of 17.5 inches.

The latest in a series of atmospheric river storms pummeled Northern California on Thursday, toppling trees, battering the coastline and swelling rivers and streams into furious torrents as residents braced for more intense weather set to arrive in the near future.