Overview For more than a decade, few federal environmental regulations have generated more uncertainty – and more frustration – for farmers, ranchers and rural landowners than the federal definition of “waters of the United States,” or WOTUS, under the Clean Water Act. The latest development suggests that the federal government […]Read more »
Regulatory Law
243 posts
Overview A recent federal court decision has created significant uncertainty for agricultural employers who rely on the H-2A program. In United Farm Workers v. United States Department of Labor,[1] the federal district court for the Eastern District of California held that the Department of Labor’s (DOL) new methodology for calculating […]Read more »
Overview One of the recurring issues in Farm Service Agency (FSA) litigation concerns the time within which a producer may challenge agency action that exceeds the authority granted by Congress or the agency’s own regulations. While many FSA disputes center on factual determinations or the agency’s exercise of discretion, others […]Read more »
Overview For farmers and ranchers, private property is more than an investment – it is the foundation of their livelihood, their family legacy, and often their retirement security. Private property disputes rarely make national headlines, but two recent eminent-domain cases illustrate how judicial interpretation can either preserve or erode those […]Read more »
Overview On June 30, the White House issued an Executive Order 14414 entitled, Advancing Regenerative Agriculture and Strengthening American Farm Resilience.[1] It represents the federal government’s launching of a major new initiative encouraging regenerative agriculture through tax incentives rather than direct regulation. It’s designed to tie into the IRC §45Z […]Read more »
Overview This week, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a trio of landmark decisions that offer an instructive, mixed baseline for defenders of private property rights, the separation of powers, and the rule of law. Across these three major rulings – Pung v. Isabella County,[1] Cisco Systems, Inc. v. Doe,[2] […]Read more »
Overview Facing compressed operating margins, elevated interest rates, and fluctuating trade dynamics, producers are increasingly forced to reevaluate their foundational business structures. Operational decisions that once seemed routine – such as signing a bank loan renewal or selling an underutilized combine – now carry sophisticated, sometimes hidden, tax and regulatory […]Read more »
Overview For decades, antitrust enforcement focused primarily on what competitors said to one another. Regulators searched for evidence of explicit agreements, secret meetings, price-fixing schemes, and market-allocation arrangements. But in today’s data-driven economy, federal antitrust authorities increasingly view a different concern as equally important: what competitors know about one another. […]Read more »
Overview The USDA’s Commodity Credit Corporation has issued a highly anticipated final rule. Published and effective June 2, 2026, the rule incorporates the payment-limit and eligibility modifications enacted under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) into the federal regulations at 7 CFR Part 1400. For agricultural producers operating through […]Read more »
Overview For many agricultural businesses, the “USDA Organic” seal is far more than a label; it is a vital market differentiator that signals quality, integrity, and consumer trust. However, entering the organic marketplace requires navigating a rigorous federal regulatory framework overseen by the USDA’s National Organic Program (NOP).[1] In recent […]Read more »