Usually state legislative battles over raw milk are fought only by local advocates and raw milk specific groups like the Weston A. Price Foundation.  What follows is testimony about how long some has been drinking raw milk and how they’ve never personally gotten sick.  The Tenth Amendment Center is making a different arguments.  “Constitutionally, food safety falls within the powers reserved to the states and the people,” says a position paper written by Maharrey. “The feds have no authority to enforce food safety laws within the border of a state. [node:read-more:link]

From down-home delis to upscale bistros, dozens of restaurants nationwide are seeking "sanctuary" status, a designation owners hope will help protect employees in an immigrant-heavy industry and tone down fiery rhetoric sparked by the presidential campaign. First inspired by churches, the label is something cities and other public entities have sought to offer local protections to immigrants living in the U.S. [node:read-more:link]

During year-end meetings with farm clients, Minneapolis-based consultant Rod Mauszycki, heard farmers pose a question the veteran tax adviser had never heard before, "What's the penalty for not carrying health insurance next year?" "Many farm families are getting charged $20,000, $30,000, or even close to $40,000 in premiums and out-of-pocket costs before their insurance kicks in," said Mauszycki, a principal with Clifton Larson Allen LLP's agribusiness and cooperative group. "The federal penalty of $1,000 to $2,000 is relatively minor. [node:read-more:link]

Lawmakers are talking about the problems that plague some of Georgia’s smaller communities. Main Street businesses that have closed. Financially struggling hospitals. Poor internet connections. Schools that don’t offer all the classes that will help students get into the University of Georgia or Georgia Tech. Young people moving to cities and never coming back.  Now there’s a move afoot in the state House to try and look at all these things comprehensively. [node:read-more:link]

Gov. Paul LePage abruptly withdrew his nomination of a former state lawmaker to the Land for Maine’s Future board on Friday, giving no reason for his action on a nomination that had drawn fire from environmentalists.  LePage, in a three-sentence letter to House Speaker Sara Gideon, wrote that he is no longer nominating former state Rep. [node:read-more:link]

Environmental groups are challenging an Environmental Protection Agency decision to allow the sale of an herbicide marketed as a solution for farmers dealing with difficult weeds ( Nat’l Family Farm Coal. v. EPA , 9th Cir., No. 17-70196, 1/20/17 ).  The challengers, which include the National Family Farm Coalition, Center for Food Safety, Center for Biological Diversity and Pesticide Action Network North America, filed a lawsuit Jan. 20 in the Ninth U.S. [node:read-more:link]

Ranchers could receive compensation for livestock killed by mountain lions under a bill heard by a legislative committee. House Bill 286, introduced by Rep. Ray Shaw, and brought before the House Agriculture Committee, would add mountain lion predation to the purview of the Montana Livestock Loss Board. [node:read-more:link]

What started as a gritty protest by a former Badlands National Park Service employee who wanted to give President Trump a piece of his mind snowballed overnight Tuesday and early Wednesday into a Twitter movement in support of climate change science. [node:read-more:link]

WGL Holdings, which supplies natural gas to 1.1 million customers in the Washington region, was bought by Calgary-based ­AltaGas in a cash deal worth $6.4 billion, the companies said Wednesday. They hope to close the sale by year’s end.  AltaGas Ltd. said it will relocate its U.S. power business to WGL Holding’s headquarters on Constitution Avenue in Washington. The Canadian firm may add about 20 positions over the next two years, according to executives on both sides of the deal. [node:read-more:link]

An investigation is ongoing on how a pipeline leaked 138,600 gallons of diesel fuel in Worth County early Wednesday morning, according to Magellan Midstream Partners L.P., the pipeline company. "It’s a big one — it’s significant," said Jeff Vansteenburg, a field office supervisor for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. [node:read-more:link]