Biden Administration

Last week, the Bureau of Land Management announced plans to “enhance” greater sage-grouse conservation on public lands in Oregon and Colorado.  The agency said the approved habitat conservation measures will support western communities and benefit more than 350 other wildlife species.  Opponents of the pr...

It’s been over four years since the United States has entered into a free trade agreement.  Many in the Ag community will say that is one of the many pressures making farming more challenging these days.  House Ag Committee member Dan Newhouse said the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative h...

Now that her time at the USDA has come to an end, former Oregon Department of Agriculture Director Alexis Taylor has joined the International Fresh Produce Association as chief global policy officer.  She will start her new role at the Association on February 18th.   ...

On Wednesday, USDA’s Rural Development announced that it will invest $94 million in Yakama Power's Clean Energy Project.  The funds come via the Powering Affordable Clean Energy program, PACE, where rural electric cooperatives and communities can use funding to lower electricity costs for businesses and families, while reducing climate pollution.    Yakama Power said th...

Once again, efforts are underway to remove the Snake River dams.  Officials in the state of Washington as well as the Federal level say the dams must be removed to help salmon migration numbers as well as the overall environment.  Central Washington’s Dan Newhouse said over the past four years of the Biden Administration, the dams have been in the crosshairs, despite the many benefits they bring t

Trade is always on the mind of Northwest Ag leaders, since the region is so dependent on overseas buyers.  But more and more, the American farming community as a whole is talking about trade, and what’s being done to open up new markets, or expand existing ones.  Derek Sandiso...

If you ever have an opportunity to visit the USDA headquarters in D.C., you’ll see painted portraits of all agriculture secretaries, including that of Secretary Tom Vilsack, from his first term of service from 2009 to 2017.  As Vilsack prepares to wrap up a second four-year stint as Ag Secretary, some might be surprised when he says a second portrait reflecting this most recent time in office is n

Thanks to a recently announced $19.1 million grant from USDA’s Rural Development, residents of the Colville Reservation will benefit from improved high-speed internet access.  The tribes will use the funding to expand broadband access to 165 residential customers, six businesses, and 20 farms in Okanogan County.  RD said this ...

Most eyes are focused on the Farm Bill, or lack thereof, but that is not the only issue farm county needs to watch as 2024 draws to a close, and we start a new year.  Mary Kay Thatcher, Senior Manager Federal Government and Industry Relations for Syngenta, said taxes will be a topic of note early in 2025.   “...

On Thursday, Idaho Senators Mike Crapo and Jim Risch demanded the Biden administration stop any eleventh-hour attempts to breach the lower Snake River dams.   “The incoming administration should be allowed the time and opportunity to carefully review and shape the management of the Columbia River System, including the lower Snake River dams.  The rive...