EPA to Respond on Chlorpyrifos
The EPA has 90 days, or until July 18, 2019, to explain why chlorpyrifos should not be banned, says a recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. This is the latest news in an ongoing issue surrounding the human health risks from chlorpyrifos. Earlier this year, the 9th Circuit court […]
Update on Additional H-2B Visas
AmericanHort and the H-2B Workforce Coalition continue to urge the Administration to immediately make available to seasonal employers the additional 30,000 H-2B visas that it committed to releasing last month. We hope the final rule outlining the process for applying for these visas will be released shortly. On March 29, the Department of Homeland Security […]
AmericanHort Participates in Virginia Congressional Visit
On April 26, Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) visited AmericanHort premium member Battlefield Farms in Rapidan, Virginia. Spanberger, a newly-elected member of Congress, who also sits on the House Committee on Agriculture, spent over two hours touring the facility and discussing priority issues. The AmericanHort advocacy team had worked with Battlefield Farms to coordinate the visit […]
Social Security Administration Resumes “No-Match” Letters
The Social Security Administration (SSA), beginning in April 2019, has resumed sending “Employer Correction Request” letters, also known as “no-match letters,” to every employer that has at least one Social Security no-match, meaning that names or Social Security numbers (SSNs) listed on an employer’s Form W-2 do not match SSA’s records. The letters now being […]
Ag Secretary Perdue Defends Glyphosate
Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has expressed concerns over recent glyphosate rulings and their impacts on U.S. agriculture. At a House appropriations subcommittee hearing, Perdue asserted that it would ‘devastating’ if glyphosate were pulled from the market and added that it has ‘exponentially’ increased crop production in the last 25 years. “I’m afraid that while […]
USDA Considers Change for Plants in Growing Media
USDA’s Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service has published a notice and request for comment regarding importation of plants established in growing media. For context, foreign-grown plants in growing media (PIGM) are generally prohibited entry into the U.S. with the notable exception of Canada. This is due to the fact that plants in growing media are inherently […]
H-2B Visas Still Expected Soon
Craig Regelbrugge & Laurie Flanagan On March 29, the Department of Homeland Security announced that it plans to release an additional 30,000 H-2B visas, that but that these visas would likely be limited to returning workers who had received visas during the 2016, 2017, or 2018 program years. The Fiscal 2019 Consolidated Appropriations Act had […]
National Green Industry Survey Begins Data Collection
The Green Industry Research Consortium, with funding support from the Horticultural Research Institute (HRI), is launching the National Green Industry Survey this month. This represents the seventh time that this survey has been conducted since 1989. The purpose of the survey is to document trends in production, marketing, and retailing practices in the U.S. green […]
Overtime Rule Update
AmericanHort continues to monitor proposed changes to the overtime rules. The Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy is hosting a series of roundtable discussions on to gather input from small businesses about the potential impact of the Department of Labor’s (DOL) proposed rule which would increase the minimum salary for the “white collar” overtime exemption from $23,660 annually […]
AmericanHort Attends Census of Ag Celebration
The Department of Agriculture on April 11 celebrated the release of the 2017 Census of Agriculture, a vital data set published every five years by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). AmericanHort advocacy team members Dr. Jill Calabro, Tal Coley, and Tristan Daedalus attended the event, which was held at USDA headquarters. Secretary of Agriculture […]