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This week was the last week for new bills to be introduced in either chamber in 2023, unless brought forward through an “exempt committee,” such as tax or appropriations. Committees will be busy holding hearings next week, as all hearings and other action on most bills must be completed by Tuesday, Feb. 21. A water policy bill was heard in the House Water Committee this week, to be followed by a water funding bill next week. Utilities committees in both the House and Senate were very busy this week, and next,...

2023 Legislative Session Continues Legislative committees held many hearings on bills this week as new legislation continues to be introduced. A water bill was introduced and quickly scheduled for hearing. Utilities committees in the House and Senate have scheduled hearings on numerous bills concerning utility rates. Committees have also begun to review agency budgets, and the Senate held a hearing this week on a bill seeking to transfer another $1 billion into the budget stabilization fund. Next week, the House Committee on Agriculture will hold a hearing on a Senate Resolution...

2023 Legislative Session Continues This week, the governor gave her delayed State of the State, and the legislature introduced a flurry of additional bills. A few hearings are being held, but many more are scheduled for next week. There was continued discussion around the capitol on the recent listing of the Lesser Prairie Chicken as a threatened species in Kansas, which culminated in the introduction of a Senate Resolution pushing back on the listing.   Plastic Container Regulation, State Level Preemption Last year, legislation was passed and sent to the governor that would have...

2023 Legislative Session Continues This week, the legislature introduced many new bills and even began to hold hearings. There was discussion around the capitol on the recent listing of the Lesser Prairie Chicken as a threatened species in Kansas, and the negative impacts this would have on various industries in our state, which culminated in the introduction of a Senate Resolution pushing back on the listing. Here are some of the other highlights from this week.   House Water Committee Update This week, the House Water Committee received a briefing from the Kansas...

Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) joined a coalition letter supporting requesting congress include in the 2023 Farm Bill reauthorization language under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) codifying state oversight of pesticides at the state level. 46 states have adopted some form of pesticide preemption and are working cooperatively with local officials to enforce robust oversight of state pesticide laws. Since the 1970s, State lead agencies have worked with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through cooperative agreements to administer and enforce FIFRA laws and support the development of scientifically...

The Asmark Institute has released its 2023 Applicator Manual. Published every February, this 1,800 page book contains over 150+ specimen labels of the most popular custom applied products. This manual has become the industry standard in helping comply with EPA's requirement to have current label information available for applicators while handling or applying pesticides. Place a copy in every piece of application equipment and nurse or tendering units. PURCHASE MANUAL  ...

With the spring season coming up and plans being made for weed management plans and associated training requirements, ARA is providing links to the training and label information sites for the three manufacturers of over-the-top (OTT) labeled dicamba products. Users of OTT dicamba are required to receive training in order to use these products and these training sessions will be starting soon. Product stewardship and label compliance is important with any pesticide, and the future availability of this technology depends on strong stewardship (and cooperative weather). Reference these links from Kansas Agribusiness...

2023 Legislative Session Commences The Kansas legislature gaveled in on Monday, January 9, 2023, on the first day of the 90-day session of the two-year biennium. Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association’s (KARA) government affairs staff was at the capitol to greet new members and welcome back returning legislators. House and Senate Leadership released their shared vision for this session. Governor Laura Kelly’s was sworn in, but her State of the State address was postponed while she recovered from symptoms of what was initially thought to be COVID-19, but later turned out not...

Late last week, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the prepublication availability of the final "Revised Definition of 'Waters of the United States'" rule, which will be effective 60 days after its publication in the Federal Register. The rule is slated to replace the 2020 Navigable Waters Protection Rule with the pre-2015 regulation, including a few additional clarifications. Last October, the United States Supreme Court received arguments on a matter, referred to as Sackett v. EPA, which centers on the extent of the U.S. EPA’s jurisdiction to enforce the...

Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) is facilitating six scholarships to graduating Kansas-based high school seniors and current college students in 2023. The deadline to submit applications if 5:00 p.m., on Friday, February 24, 2023. Since its inception, the KARA scholarship program has awarded countless deserving students funds necessary to pursue agriculture-related fields of study. "Thank you for selecting my application as one of the winners of your scholarship," Timothy Pearce, a 2022 recipient said. "I look forward to spending time at Kansas State improving my knowledge and experience in agriculture. Scholarships such as...

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