On August 24, 2023, during World Water Week in Stockholm, the UAE Presidency of COP28 revealed its strategic focus named Water Agenda. It is an anticipation to the official 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference, popularly known as COP28, scheduled to take place from November 30 to December 12, 2023, in Dubai. You can find…
As of September 29, 2023, the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Certify.gov portal for submitting 8(a) applications has reopened for both individually-owned and entity-owned applicants. The SBA had previously stopped accepting new applications for the 8(a) program while it devised a response to the injunction issued in the case of Ultima Services Corp. v. U.S. Dept….
On July 19, 2023, significant implications were made apparent on the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)’s 8(a) Business Development program. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee in the Ultima Services Corp. v. U.S. Department of Agriculture case imposed an injunction on the SBA. It prevented the SBA from determining federal contractor…
Climate change protesters from various groups convened in Bern, Switzerland, on Saturday, urging for reforms to current climate change legislation ahead of an imminent national election. The demonstration saw an estimated crowd of over 60,000 concerned citizens, particularly alarmed about the intensifying impact of agriculture and fossil fuels on the environment. The demonstrators claimed that…
Republicans have proposed in the House of Representatives a new Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2024 (H.R. 4368). This act seeks to rescind changes set forth by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s January 2023 amendments pertaining to the Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) program. The contested…
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has issued fresh instructions on how the 8(a) Business Development Program should be used in light of the ongoing injunction in Ultima Services Corp. v. U.S. Department of Agriculture (No. 2:20-CV-00041-DCLC-CRW, 2023 WL 463348 – Eastern District of Tennessee, July 19, 2023). This case highlighted the SBA’s use of…
In a recent announcement, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission reported that the Northwest Arkansas Land Trust (“NWALT”) has designated a conservation easement in Crawford County, Arkansas, to encompass 580 acres. This information was made public as part of a news release, which detailed that the easement had been established in partnership with landowners Philip…
On September 8, 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) unveiled a revision to the definition of ‘waters of the United States’ (WOTUS), signaling significant consequences for the jurisdictional scope of the Clean Water Act (CWA). The release, as published in the Federal Register (88 Fed. Reg. 61964 (Sept. 8,…
California’s environmental law and policy have undergone significant evolution, especially regarding the State Water Resources Control Board’s authority to investigate water rights. The novel Senate Bill 389 has been passed by the state legislators. The bill, which now awaits the approval of Governor Gavin Newsom, explicitly authorizes the Board to look into all assertions of…
Underlining the gravity of antitrust concerns in the United States, a group of 19 Democratic Attorney Generals (AGs) recently submitted a comment letter to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The letter strongly endorsed the agencies’ endeavors to reinforce the Merger Guidelines, which re dictated by federal antitrust law to…
In response to the landmark US Supreme Court decision in Sackett v. EPA, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the US Army Corps of Engineers, have published a final rule effective as of September 8, 2023. This new directive, aptly referred to as the Sackett rule, provides a concrete definition of the term ‘waters of…
In light of recent events involving corporate heavyweight, Ultima Services Corporation, significant motions have been filed that warrant the attention of legal professionals globally. On the 15th of September, 2023, Ultima made a move that could potentially set a benchmark for future corporate law cases. The corporation filed for additional equitable relief against the United…
In an attempt to modernize the agricultural sector, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced its intentions to revise the H-2A visa program. This federal program allows U.S. employers or agents who meet explicit regulatory requirements to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary agricultural jobs. The proposed modifications aim to…
Last week, a development occurred concerning a legal battle shaking up the financial sector as three farm credit trade associations, namely the Farm Credit Council, Texas Farm Credit, and Capital Farm Credit, known collectively as “Farm Credit Intervenors”, entered the fray. This development comes in the form of unopposed emergency motions for leave to intervene…
As the week of September 11 commences, Congress appears to be inevitably heading towards a shutdown. Both the House and Senate are scheduled to be in session this week. One of the main issues on the agenda is the considerations of Senate appropriators to discuss a three-bill package on the Senate floor. Key topics within…
The Dominican Republic suspended the issuance of visas to citizens of Haiti as of Monday, and is considering closing its border following a conflict over water access. The dispute centers on Haiti’s construction of a canal, leading to concerns about diverting water from the Dajabón River. Recognized for its paramount importance within the Dominican Republic’s…
In our Weekly Issue No. 161, we’re diving into the latest happenings in food venture financing. The field continues to churn with activity as more capital flows into early-stage food and agricultural startups. This trend is exemplified by the recent launch of Flora Ventures, an $80 million venture capital fund. Flora Ventures was initiated by…
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Biotechnology Regulatory Services (BRS) has confirmed its annual Stakeholder Meeting will be held on November 15, 2023. Designed to facilitate discussions between major stakeholders, this gathering will extend options for both in-person and virtual attendance. Expected to convene at the USDA Center…
The Colombian Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has released the draft of a new decree for public comment. This decree intends to modify and add to Decree 1071 of 2015, as per Article 61 of Law 2294 of 2023, also known as the National Development Plan for 2022-2026. Interesting to note, there’s also a…
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has granted approval to two additional companies, UPS Flight Forward and uAvionix, to conduct drone operations beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) in national airspace, a significant development in the increasingly relevant drone industry. Notably, UPS Flight Forward aims to utilize BVLOS drone operations for small-package delivery via a ground-based…
On September 1, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee issued an order in the case of Ultima Services Corp. v. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, et. al., Case No. 2:20-cv-00041, following a status hearing held the previous day. JD Supra reports. Prior to this order, the District Court in Ultima had…
The U.S. Supreme Court has unveiled its list of seven cases to be argued in the November session, according to a report by SCOTUSblog. Two of the high-profile matters in this to-be-argued list are central to the exercise of the First and Second Amendment rights. A Second Amendment dispute, namely United States v. Rahimi, is…
In a pivotal move on August 30, 2023, the Small Business Administration (SBA) responded to a legal demand crafted in the Ultima Services Corp. v. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture case. The SBA filed a Notice of Compliance, directly engaging the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee (Greenville Division) in the escalating legal…
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has rapidly implemented a new rule regarding jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act (CWA), making use of an exception to the Administrative Procedure Act’s normal requirement for public notice and comment. The new rule concerns the definition of “Waters of the United States,” and comes in response to a…
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee recently shifted the landscape for minority-owned businesses aiming to qualify under the Small Business Administration’s (SBA’s) 8(a) Business Development Program. In a notable decision, the court found that a presumption of social disadvantage for certain minority groups – as employed by the United States Department…