Agriculture Law Commons^™

Revising The Debt Limit For “Small Business Debtors”: The Legislative Half-Measure Of The Small Business Reorganization Act, Michael C. Blackmon

Brooklyn Journal of Corporate, Financial & Commercial Law

Bankruptcy law changed drastically in 2019 with the passage of several bills. This Note will examine two of them. First, the Family Farmer Relief Act of 2019 raised the debt limit of the family farmer from $4,411,400 to $10,000,000. This enables more financially distressed family farmers to be eligible for Chapter 12 relief, a reorganizational tool designed for farmers. Second, the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019 created Subchapter V – Small Business Debtor Reorganization in Chapter 11. This new Subchapter streamlined the reorganization process for small business debtors by removing roadblocks which often derail a reorganization of a small …

Increasing Groundwater Recharge Activity In The San Joaquin Valley Of California, Jacob Willhite, Jacob Willhite

Agricultural Education and Communication

Over the past several decades, groundwater has become a primary source of water used for agriculture in California. Surface water available for agricultural use has depleted due to declining rain totals and reallocation to environmental purposes. As a result, groundwater overdraft has become a severe challenge, especially in the San Joaquin Valley of California. This excessive overdraft causes a plethora of issues, one of the most serious being land subsidence (Faunt, Sneed, Traum, & Brandt, 2016). Studies suggest some areas of the San Joaquin Valley have experienced more than a 28-foot drop in the land level since the 1970’s (Alley …

Hatching A Plan For Local Communities: Environmental Justice In Poultry Siting Decisions, Diana Stanley

Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy

One of the implementation problems for environmental justice is reconciling the need to protect public health with the economic realities of struggling communities. This article explores that tension through the lens of siting decisions for large scale poultry operations in rural communities. Poultry siting decisions have major economic and environmental impacts and have been underdiscussed in the environmental justice literature. This article focuses on the role of law and policy in concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) siting— from community benefit agreements to Right to Farm legislation. It uses a Kansas CAFO siting and the wider Kansas experience as a case …

False Foods: Harmonizing The Eu And Us Organics Programs, Elizabeth G. Fudge

Brooklyn Journal of International Law

The growth of the importation and exportation of organic foods in recent years has led governments around the globe to take more aggressive approaches in overseeing and certifying such products. Currently, there is a discrepancy in how states certify and respond to non-compliance issues for imported organic products. This creates a strong need to harmonize organics programs, specifically between the EU and US programs, as they are the two largest consumers of organic products. Through auditing both the EU and US organic import programs, significant issues of non-compliance became exceedingly clear. This Note argues that the best solution for addressing …

Coronavirus Food Assistance Program For Livestock Producers, Bradley Lubben

Extension Farm and Ranch Management News

United States Congress and the President have approved multiple phases of COVID-19 assistance to date including the $2.3 trillion CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act passed in March that provides financial support for agricultural producers as a small part of the overall relief.

While agricultural producers and agribusinesses are eligible for two programs administered through the Small Business Administration, including the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs), the primary support for agriculture is coming from USDA through the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). The CARES Act provided $9.5 billion directly to the Secretary of …

Coronavirus Food Assistance Program For Crops Producers, Bradley Lubben

Extension Farm and Ranch Management News

The United States Congress and the President have approved multiple phases of COVID-19 assistance to date including the $2.3 trillion CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act passed in March that provides financial support for agricultural producers as a small part of the overall relief.

While agricultural producers and agribusinesses are eligible for two programs administered through the Small Business Administration, including the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs), the primary support for agriculture is coming from USDA through the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). The CARES Act provided $9.5 billion directly to the Secretary …

Alternatives To High Nebraska Agricultural Land Real Estate Taxes, Part 2 Of 2: Like-Kind Exchange, Austin Duerfeldt

Extension Farm and Ranch Management News

In part one of this series of articles, I touched on the idea that, when holding land as an investment, considering alternatives is important. We discussed the process of selling the ground, paying the capital gains and then investing in alternatives such as stocks. Here in part two, we will continue to consider the question of agricultural land being the correct investment for your portfolio but will take a different alternative approach. Now, we will look at like-kind exchanges.

1031 Like-Kind Exchange

With a 1031 like-kind exchange, we are taking a real property asset and exchanging it for another real …

Pakootas V. Teck Cominco Metals, Ltd., Connlan W. Whyte

Public Land & Resources Law Review

Throughout the twentieth century, Teck Cominco Metals leaked metal pollutants into the Upper Columbia River that ultimately entered the United States and the Colville Indian Reservation. In 2004, after almost a decade of working with the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the Colville Tribes initiated a citizen suit under CERCLA against Teck for damaging the ecosystem of the Upper Columbia River. In 2018, the Ninth Circuit affirmed judgment against Teck for recovery costs and attorney’s fees.

Advanced Health Care Directives In Nebraska: Health Care Power Of Attorney And Living Wills, J. David Aiken

Extension Farm and Ranch Management News

First paragraph:

During this period of coronavirus pandemic, some Nebraskans may be concerned about how medical decisions will be made for them if they are unable to communicate their wishes to their health care providers themselves. In these circumstances, health care providers will normally consult with the patient’s family members who may be available (spouse, then adult children–consensus, then parents, etc.) If no family members are present, the health care providers will use their best medical judgment in making health care decisions for the patient.

Disclaimer

This information is intended for educational purposes only; it must not be taken as …

Feeding The World: How Changes In Biotech Regulation Can Jump-Start The Second Green Revolution And Diversify The Agricultural Industry, John A. Erwin, Robert Glennon

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

As the Earth’s population climbs from 7.7 billion in 2019 to almost 10 billion by mid-century, farmers will need to increase food production by 70 percent. This Article analyzes the tools available to achieve this demanding goal. We assess changes in agriculture related to both the organic industry and the high-tech sector that are enabling farmers to become more efficient. Critically, biotechnology offers great promise to hasten the pace of increased agricultural efficiency through genetic engineering. While genetic modification has been controversial, we cannot exclude any viable policy option, especially one with so much promise. Yet the current regulatory environment …

Accounting For Ag: Step Up While Passing Down, Austin Duerfeldt

Extension Farm and Ranch Management News

Summary

Through this article, I hope you’ve gained a better understanding of the basics of a step up in basis. A step up in basis can be viewed as an opportune time to sell long held farm ground that appreciated in value, with little to no capital gain issues. It plays a vital role in estate planning. In the individual case of each farmer/rancher, how the step up in basis might work for your operation varies on many specific circumstances. Developing an estate planning team that includes professionals such as an attorney and accountant, as well as, investment and insurance …

Alternatives To High Nebraska Agricultural Land Real Estate Taxes, Part 1 Of 2: Capital Gains And Alternative Investments, Austin Duerfeldt

Extension Farm and Ranch Management News

First paragraph

In Nebraska, most of my conversations about managing agricultural properties, whether rental or production, tend to steer toward real estate taxes at some point. While many counties in Nebraska have seen agricultural land taxes drop slightly since the 2015-2017 period, they are still a significant portion of operational expense. For example, dryland acres in Southeast Nebraska ballpark around $60 an acre. For someone looking to cash rent inherited ground, this becomes a major point of concern when looking for a tenant. If that ground cash rents for $190 an acre, and $60 an acre goes towards real estate …

Examining Farm Bill Expenditures Over The Last Decade, Bailey Riggs

Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Undergraduate Honors Theses

The American Farm Bill is a bill that is passed by Congress every five to six years. This legislation is omnibus, meaning it covers a wide variety of topics such as nutrition, conservation, rural development, crop insurance, and much more. This thesis will study the effectiveness of the allocation of funding covered in the Farm Bill, specifically Farm Bills from the last 12 years. This bill has a significant impact on farmers who need support from the government to remain profitable and continue their operation. This thesis will examine how shifts in funding can affect farmers growing crops, raising beef …

Journal Of Food Law & Policy - Spring 2020, Journal Editors

Journal of Food Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Editorial Board, Journal Editors

Journal of Food Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

School Of Law Faculty And Staff, Journal Editors

Journal of Food Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Dairy Tales: Global Portraits Of Milk And Law, Jessica Eisen, Xiaoqian Hu, Erum Sattar

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Cow’s milk has enjoyed a widespread cultural signification in many parts of the world as “nature’s perfect food.”1 A growing body of scholarship, however, has challenged the image of cow’s milk in human diets and polities as a product of “nature,” and has instead sought to illuminate the political, scientific, colonial and postcolonial, economic, and social forces that have in fact defined the production, consumption, and cultural signification of cow’s milk in human societies. This emerging attention to the social, legal, and political significance of milk sits at the intersection of several fields of academic inquiry: anthropology, history, animal studies, …

Contents, Journal Editors

Journal of Food Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Milk And The Motherland? Colonial Legacies Of Taste And The Law In The Anglophone Caribbean, Merisa S. Thompson

Journal of Food Law & Policy

This paper tells a story of the relationship between colonialism and capitalism through the lens of “milk” and “the law” in the Caribbean. Despite high levels of lactose intolerance amongst its population, milk is a regular part of many Caribbean diets and features prominently in its foodscapes. This represents a distinctive colonial inheritance that is the result of centuries of ongoing colonial violence and displacement. Taking a feminist and intersectional approach, the paper draws on analysis of key pieces of colonial legislation at significant historical junctures and secondary literature to do three things. Firstly, it examines how law aided the …

Cares Act 2020: Unemployment Insurance And Farmer/Ranchers, Robert Tigner

Extension Farm and Ranch Management News

First paragraph:

Generally, unemployment insurance across the country is managed by state government. Each has different rules, with oversight by the US Department of Labor. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) Act made changes to the unemployment coverage for workers and appropriated funds for the changes. The act tasked the Labor Department with writing rules for the changes and it has issued an Unemployment Insurance Letter — UL No. 16-20 — that begins the rulemaking process. This guidance will then be used by Nebraska to implement the CARES Act. This article reviews what is known now with …