By National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Al Franken (D-MN) introduced the Family Farmer Bankruptcy Tax Clarification Act of 2012 (S.3545).  The Act is intended to overturn the ruling in the U.S. Supreme Court case Hall v. United States, a case that addressed the status of government […]

By American Farm Bureau Federation President Barack Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney recently spelled out their positions on agriculture issues for the American Farm Bureau Federation. In a questionnaire, both candidates went into detail about their positions on energy, environmental regulations, farm labor and more. Every four years, the […]

Natural Resource News Note: The Oregon Farm Bureau has done a full-page ad insert into the state’s agriculture newspaper The Capitol Press.  The ad leads with many of the stirring issues going on right now including the statewide debate over to repeal the estate tax and the recent outrage over […]

By Oregon Department of Agriculture Oregon farmers and ranchers enjoyed one of the best bottom lines in recent times last year thanks to a combination of strong agricultural production and good prices for many of the state’s crops and livestock. Despite concerns over historically high expenses, Oregon’s net farm income […]

Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber laid out his views on solving the salmon vs. dam battle in a guest opinion to the Oregonian.  Here is what he said: If you look only at the courtroom record, environmentalists are winning the war to save salmon in the Northwest. A year ago, U.S. […]

By Cindy Corn Commentary National Association of Wheat Growers A growing number of organizations are coming out against a ballot initiative in California that would require labeling of many products containing genetically-engineered (GE) food. While those in favor of Proposition 37 include trial lawyers,  those urging Californians to vote No […]

Wall Street Editorial, 9-14-2012 Small business owners and farmers have been some of the hardest hit by the tough economy, and those who stay afloat increasingly worry they won’t be able to pass on their enterprises to the next generation. In liberal Oregon, of all places, a measure will be […]

New Oil Industry Paper Favors Gasoline Imports, Higher Diesel Prices Over RFS Renewable Fuels Association A report released this week by EPRINC, an oil industry-funded research group, suggests a multi-year suspension of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) could reduce U.S. ethanol use by more than half. To offset this loss […]

By National Farmers Union National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson issued the following statement following U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s announcement of the remaining votes in the House, which does not include the 2012 Farm Bill: “The 2008 Farm Bill expires on Sept. 30. Congress is […]

by Rex Storm, Forest Policy Manager Associated Oregon Loggers Congress Attempts to Defund USFS Planning: When the US House Interior Appropriations Committee passed its FY2013 budget for the US Forest Service in June, it eliminated all funding for national forest planning and implementing its horrible new Planning Rule. The Committee […]