Latest from Agricultural Law Weekly Review

National Agricultural Policy: GAO Decision Finds USDA’s Use of Commodity Credit Corporation Funds Lawful
On September 20, 2023, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a decision concluding that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) “did not violate the [Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC)] Charter Act or the Antideficiency Act when it used CCC funds for

GHG Emissions: California Senate Passes New Emissions Disclosure Requirements for Billion-Dollar Businesses
On September 11, 2023, the California Senate approved Senate Bill 253, which will require all private and public companies operating in California with a total revenue of $1 billion or more to comply with new disclosure requirements that reflect the emissions disclosure

Pesticides: Federal Court Approves Settlement in 2011 EPA Pesticide Registration Dispute
On September 12, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California issued an order approving a stipulated settlement agreement between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and plaintiff environmental groups, resolving a longstanding dispute over EPA’s registration of 382 pesticide active

Conservation Programs: Federal Court Vacates USDA Decision Not Listing Eastern Hellbender Under Endangered Species Act
On September 5, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued an opinion vacating and remanding the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) April 2019 proposed rule, which declared unnecessary

LNG Infrastructure: The Department of Transportation Suspends LNG Rail Transportation
On September 1, 2023, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) published a rule in the Federal Register suspending a previously published final rule that allowed for the transportation of liquified natural gas (LNG) by rail cars. The PHSMA’s