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18 May

Posted at 05:00h in Advocacy
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The Kansas legislature will return for one final day of business on Thursday, May 21st. Multiple committee met this week to consider various bills – all of which will all compete for limited action next Thursday. Large items, such as Medicaid expansion, might still be open for discussion, as will certain tax bills and COVID-related items. The Legislature was initially scheduled to return a few weeks ago in April for a full veto session. That date was postponed, however, in response to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to adjourning in...

18 May

Posted at 05:00h in Industry News
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Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association's (KARA) scholarship committee met in late-April and awarded nearly $10,000 in scholarships to Kansas high school graduating seniors and current college students for the 2019-20 academic year. The scholarship committee, comprised of KARA's membership, received more than 100 applications and awarded six students scholarships to assist in advancing their academic endeavors. “KARA has a long and proud history of providing scholarships to worthy students,” KARA’s president and CEO Ron Seeber said. “We congratulate this year’s recipients and wish them the best with their studies and their future contributions...

15 May

Posted at 14:23h in Industry News
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Recently, the USDA has announced their new Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive (HBIIP) program to increase higher ethanol blend availability. Projects may include costs related to upgrading fuel dispensers, retrofitting equipment, underground storage tank system components, and other installation costs required to offer ethanol blends greater than 10 percent or fuel containing biodiesel blends greater than 5 percent. HBIIP covers up to 50% of the eligible project costs, for a maximum of $5 million per applicant each. Along with USDA dollars, the Kansas Corn Commission will be contributing additional matching funds for...

15 May

Posted at 14:18h in Regulatory
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The U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today published a final rule modernizing hours of service (HOS) rules to improve safety and flexibility for commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers and the American public. The final rule brings a key reform to the short-haul exemption by extending it to 150 air miles and increasing the maximum on-duty period from 12 to 14 hours. ARA sent comments to FMCSA on Oct. 21, 2019, requesting regulatory reform to HOS rules including an expansion of the short-haul exception and maximum on-duty period. Read...

14 May

Posted at 15:20h in Advocacy, Industry News, Regulatory
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This afternoon, Kansas Governor Laura Kelly signed Executive Order 20-31, which establishes a new phase to the “Ad Astra: Plan to Reopen Kansas.” The new “1.5” Phase, effective May 18, 2020, continues reopening efforts while preserving some data-driven restrictions necessary to prevent community transmission of COVID-19. “The good news is that hospitalizations and COVID-related deaths continue to decline, enabling us to move forward with our efforts to safely reopen Kansas,” said Kelly. “Unfortunately, the daily rate of disease spread has not shown the downward trajectory necessary to move fully into Phase...

13 May

Posted at 15:16h in Industry News
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[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_single_image image="2280" img_size="full" qode_css_animation=""][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_column_text]Following direction received to enhance the Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) external brand during its board of directors strategic planning session in September of 2019, KARA is proud to unveil its refreshed logo. The association staff began evolving its external facing presence by rebuilding its database and accompanying website, launching a mobile app and now, refreshing its logo.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row"...

07 May

Posted at 06:47h in Advocacy
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On May 6, the Legislative Coordinating Council voted to reconvene the Kansas Legislature on Thursday, May 21st at a time to be determined. May 21st was the pre-scheduled date for sine die adjournment – the final day of the 2020 legislative session. While the full legislature will not meet until May 21st, House and Senate leadership may yet approve meetings by certain committees (budget, tax, etc.) for consideration of bills. A motion by Senate leadership to return a few days before the 21st to conduct additional business fell by a vote...

04 May

Posted at 15:09h in Industry News
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U.S. Small Business Administration Administrator Jovita Carranza announced today that agricultural businesses are now eligible for SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and EIDL Advance programs. SBA’s EIDL portal will reopen today as a result of funding authorized by Congress through the Paycheck Protection Program and Healthcare Enhancement Act. The legislation, signed into law by the President one week ago, provided additional funding for farmers and ranchers and certain other agricultural businesses affected by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. “For more than 30 years, SBA has been prohibited by law from providing...

04 May

Posted at 12:53h in Industry News
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Registration for the August 2020 CCA exams is now open through June 26. The exam will be taken virtually with an online proctor and examinees will need to schedule their individual exam times between July 27-August 10.  All exams will be taken the week of August 5-12. Registration period:  April 27-June 26 Exam scheduling: July 27-August 10 Exam week: August 5-12 ...

01 May

Posted at 08:18h in Regulatory
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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently announced a registration review of neonicotinoid insecticides to ensure the products meet the latest scientific standards, and opened a public comment period. Registration review includes: Imidacloprid, Clothianidin, Dinotefuran and Thiamethoxam. EPA plans to review all these insecticides to ensure consistency across the class. As part of this multistep process, EPA is seeking public comments on the current proposed interim decisions released on January 30, 2020. Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) provided analysis on neonicotinoid insecticides reporting Kansas is a leading producer in agricultural crops and regulatory...

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