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06 Jan

Posted at 10:17h in Industry News, Regulatory
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The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a final rule clarifying the standard for employee versus independent contractor status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Sharpening the test to determine who is an independent contractor under the FLSA makes it easier to identify employees covered by the Act, while recognizing and respecting the entrepreneurial spirit of workers who choose to pursue the freedoms associated with being an independent contractor. The Final Rule includes the following clarifications: Reaffirms an “economic reality” test to determine whether an individual is in business for him or herself (independent contractor)...

29 Dec

Posted at 10:38h in Industry News
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Our sincere thanks go out to all who donated, bid and won items during our first-ever virtual scholarship auction. Thanks to all of those efforts, Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) surpassed its fundraising goal of $15,000 during the two-week online event. We also extend a special thank you to ProValue Insurance for its generous $3,000 financial contribution to the KARA scholarship fund in 2020. All of the proceeds from the auction go toward awarding scholarships to graduating high school students or students already in college or votechnical schools pursuing post secondary education in an...

14 Dec

Posted at 14:24h in Advocacy
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Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA), Kansas Grain and Feed Association (KGFA) and the Kansas Cooperative Council (KCC) are modifying their annual Legislative Action Day to a one-hour, online event held from 11:00 a.m. - Noon via Zoom on Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021. "We, along with legislative leadership, have determined it would be in the best interest of our membership and those who work inside the Kansas Statehouse to make a one-time modification to the format of our 2021 Legislative Action Day and make it an online event," KARA President and CEO...

10 Dec

Posted at 09:52h in Advocacy, Industry News, Regulatory
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The Kansas Department of Agriculture has published proposed changes to state noxious weed regulations. A virtual public hearing on these regulations has been scheduled for 10:00 a.m., February 16, 2021. Anyone desiring to participate in the public hearing via video conference must pre-register at: https://kansasag.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0sfu-oqjsuGNQdMDAmKyym_oUwhjZryJZ9. As KARA prepares to review these proposed regulations and submit formal comments to KDA, we would seek input and comments from members. To provide input, please send your written comments to KARA at randy@kansasag.org on or before Friday, January 15, 2021. Links to various resources regarding the...

07 Dec

Posted at 13:02h in Industry News
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Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) would like to congratulate the certified crop advisers who have dedicated at least five years of their time to the program. Typically, KARA would host a Kansas Certified Crop Adviser (CCA) recognition banquet in December, held in conjunction with the association’s annual Crop Production Update conference. Sadly, due to COVID-19 KARA was forced to take its Crop Production Update virtual, but still wanted to recognize the hard-working CCAs who exemplify the benchmark of professionalism in agronomy. 25 years Bradley Johnson 25 years Kenny Naylor 25 years Loren Seaman 25 years...

07 Dec

Posted at 09:35h in Advocacy, Industry News
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On Friday, Dec. 4, Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) organized a coalition of 14 agriculture-related organizations and led efforts of sending a letter to Governor Laura Kelly and Kansas Secretary of Agriculture Mike Beam emphasizing prioritizing distribution of COVID-19 vaccines among agricultural employees. The National Academies of Science (NAS) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) independently determined front line agricultural workers are essential to the economy and recommended prioritizing these workers behind health care professionals and other vulnerable individuals. The letter requested Governor Kelly and Secretary Beam follow the CDC...

30 Nov

Posted at 13:37h in Industry News
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Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) announced an exciting opportunity for its membership to earn some cash prizes while helping KARA grow its membership during the association's all-member meeting over Zoom on Monday morning. A review of the morning's meeting including details on the Chairmen's Challenge, the virtual scholarship auction and much more are below. For any questions or concerns regarding the material below, please reach out to your association office by phone (785.234.0463) or send an email to membership@kansasag.org. THE CHAIRMAN'S CHALLENGE In an effort to grow KARA's membership and award some hard-earned...

25 Nov

Posted at 09:13h in Regulatory
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EPA is taking the next step in its regulatory review of glyphosate, the most widely used herbicide in the United States, which is used to control a variety of grasses and broadleaf weeds. Glyphosate is used on about 298 million acres of agricultural crop land every year and is effective and affordable. Building on EPA’s January 2020 action finalizing new mitigation measures for glyphosate, today, EPA is releasing its draft biological evaluation (BE) for glyphosate for public review and comment. Biological evaluations are the beginning of EPA’s Endangered Species Act consultation...

20 Nov

Posted at 08:25h in Advocacy, Regulatory
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The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) released an interim final rule on the definition of agricultural commodity for use in determining which agricultural products are eligible to be hauled under the agricultural exemption to the hours-of-service (HOS) rules for truck drivers. Because of the agricultural exemption, HOS regulations do not apply to the transportation of agricultural commodities by truck drivers operating completely within the 150 air-mile radius. Therefore, work and driving hours that occur within 150 air-miles of the source of the origin are not...

19 Nov

Posted at 18:55h in Industry News
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Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association encourages all of its members to join a special state of the association meeting via Zoom on Monday, Nov. 30, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. "With everything we've all been through in the last several months our Chairman Lance Nelson, our board of directors and myself wanted to provide a platform for our members to speak freely on the challenges the industry has faced, our plans for moving forward together in light of the elections and potential regulatory impacts on the industry and most importantly, how our association...

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