Category Archives: Agriculture Law

Josephine Marcotty reported recently at the Minneapolis Star Tribune Online that, “After two years of sometimes fractious discussion, a task force charged with finding ways to protect the state’s bees and butterflies is proposing dozens of ideas to make Minnesota’s landscape more hospitable to pollinators. “Chief among them: programs to add more clover and other… Continue Reading

DTN writer Emily Unglesbee reported this week that, “EPA’s decision to continue the registration of three dicamba herbicides has reverberated far beyond D.C. — through Midwest soybean fields, Southern cotton fields and all the way to Seattle, Washington, where the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is mulling a lawsuit over these very herbicides. “Monsanto… Continue Reading

Elizabeth Williams reported recently at DTN that, “There was a time when C-corporations made a lot of sense for farmers, but as tax laws changed and the benefits eroded, farmers found changing their business structure could be cumbersome and expensive. Tax advisers say 2017’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act makes it easier than ever to… Continue Reading

Des Moines Register writer Donnelle Eller reported last week that, “Developers who invested $11 million to install three wind turbines in eastern Iowa are tearing them down, after losing a legal battle waged by nearby residents. “It’s only the second time nationally a judge has ordered wind turbines to be torn down and a first… Continue Reading

Adam Belz reported recently at the Minneapolis Star Tribune Online that, “Farmers in Minnesota and across the country are watching closely as a battle over a key agricultural pesticide plays out in court. “A panel of judges in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in August ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to ban the pesticide… Continue Reading

Rachel Rice reported today at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Online that, “A New Madrid County man accused of using the weedkiller dicamba on his cotton and soybean crops outside of Environmental Protection Agency guidelines likely caused significant damage to neighboring crops, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday. “Bobby David Lowrey, 51, of Parma, is… Continue Reading

DTN Special Correspondent Elizabeth Williams reported today that, “Tax treatment of equipment trade-ins got a tune-up in 2017’s tax reform legislation. Experts say provisions restricting like-kind exchanges for machinery are offset by more generous rules on depreciation, resulting in little change to federal tax returns. “The complication: many states didn’t follow suit, especially on like-kind… Continue Reading

A recent update from Iowa State University (ISU) Extension by Kristine A. Tidgren indicated that, “As tough times continue in the farm sector, more farmers are calling it quits. In particular, many operators who do not own ground and are dependent upon renting the land of others are struggling to hold on. Many are selling farm… Continue Reading

DTN Ag Policy Editor Chris Clayton reported yesterday that, “A year into his second stint as EPA’s Region 7 administrator, Jim Gulliford said he remains committed to compliance over enforcement in working with agriculture and other industries in the four-state region, which includes Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska. “Gulliford visited with DTN last week at… Continue Reading

DTN writer Emily Unglesbee reported yesterday that, “Just how complex will dicamba use be in 2019? “So complex that the three new dicamba labels released by EPA last week are each around 40 pages long and accompanied by nearly 200 pages of documents detailing the herbicides’ registration requirements and their potential impacts on the general population,… Continue Reading