Ag Policy Blog

Obama Administration Continues Push on Rules

Chris Clayton
By  Chris Clayton , DTN Ag Policy Editor
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Thirty days left in the Obama administration and you can rest assured it won't end quietly.

President Barack Obama and the Canadian government joined forces on Tuesday to ban drilling in parts of the Arctic. Obama specifically announced a ban on offshore oil and gas drilling in the Arctic and Atlantic.

As the New York Times reported, Obama used piece of a 1953 law to create the U.S. side of the ban. The president's ban will surely be challenged in court, but as the New York Times stated, the provision Obama used has no case law to determine a precedent.

The move is seen as one of Obama's last attempts to create policies to deal with climate change that President-elect Donald Trump will have a difficult time to overturn. http://dld.bz/…

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The Arctic drilling ban comes after USDA issued new livestock marketing rules last week, including an interim final rule that would make it easier for poultry producers to challenge alleged abusive practices poultry companies. Essentially, under the Packers and Stockyards Act, courts have ruled in cases between poultry growers and poultry companies that a grower has to demonstrate a company's action against the individual grower also harmed the entire poultry market for all growers. Under the interim final rule, growers would not have to meet such a standard.

Major livestock groups strongly criticized the rule, though other farm groups announced their support for it. Some lawmakers, including the chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, said they would work to overturn the rule.

On Monday, the administration finalized a rule to protect streams and groundwater from waste-water pollution linked to coal mining. The mining industry and lawmakers from mining states condemned the rules. http://dld.bz/…

It's likely more rules are coming before President Obama leaves office. Bloomberg reported Tuesday that Republicans plan to use the Congressional Review Act to push to cancel rules when Congress reconvenes in January. http://dld.bz/…

Bloomberg reported in that same article that one rule Congress might not be able to reverse is the Department of Labor push to boost overtime pay for as many as 4 million people. The time frame for Congress to deal with that rule might be lost.

Follow me on Twitter @ChrisClaytonDTN

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BDukowitz1375121425
12/22/2016 | 6:19 AM CST
People waste because of instant gratification, Not companies. Waste is waste, whether by magic carpet or a one ton truck to get such things as a bag of groceries. Ever wonder Jay, if all these tax supported solar's will cause global cooling.
Jay Mcginnis
12/21/2016 | 6:41 AM CST
Over 50,000 soler prodiced electric powered miles, enjoy your party of dirty air, dirty water and oil wars Bonnie, seems like a big price to pay to get around but hey you folk like your politicians with that agenda! Bring it on, drill baby drill and give Isis more money to buy arms! Keep your oil addiction going!
BDukowitz1375121425
12/21/2016 | 5:53 AM CST
Some actions just do not make sense. I am all for being clean. But yet the daily, waste full pollution causing habits of the people and especially of the government(s) is a bit too much. Obamma is building a high speed train in California so gamblers can get to the casinos. It seems, Air Force One is on the go to vacation land continuously. States are adding lanes to the highway system and airports are jammed so people can get to the islands. etc. Then we have to import oil from Norway to support their health care system. Yes Jay, I have nothing against electric cars. They just do not provide enough to grow our food, let alone provide the vacations.