In the News
Tariffs and trade are hot topics in Washington these days, and two Congressmen have come together to propose a way to eliminate unnecessary trade barriers. Panama City Republican Neal Dunn and California Democrat Jimmy Panetta are tackling the trade barriers that are hurting American exports and hindering innovation and advancement in agricultural technologies.
U.S. Rep. Neal Dunn, R-Fla., and U.S. Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-Calif., are once again pairing up on a proposal, this time to lower trade barriers on American agriculture.
Towards the end of last week, Dunn and Panetta unveiled the "Growing American Food Exports Act" which updates the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 to ensure the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service program is modernized to include more opportunities to export engineered agriculture
The news also prompted concern on Capitol Hill. Rep. Jimmy Panetta, a Democrat from California and member of the House Armed Services Committee, said in a statement that “the ban, which implements the same policy that was blocked by several courts, runs counter to the American values that our troops are fighting to protect.”
Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-Carmel Valley
District office, 100 W. Alisal St., Salinas (831) 424-2229, panetta.house.gov
WASHINGTON, DC – Congressmen Neal Dunn (FL-02) and Jimmy Panetta (CA-20) teamed up to eliminate unnecessary trade barriers that are hurting American exports and hindering innovation and advances in agricultural production technologies, including biotechnology.
House Democrats sent a letter to Perdue and OMB Director Mick Mulvaney warning against cuts to federal nutrition programs in the Trump administration's fiscal year 2019 budget proposal, as well as calling for more funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Read the letter here.
On Capitol Hill, Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-Carmel, told the House of Representatives on Wednesday that its gun control efforts did not go far enough and called for patching the background check system and banning bump stocks. “We all appreciate the emotion and passion by the high school students across our country but we realize, as they do, that thoughts and prayers only go so far,” Panetta. “So now it is up to congress to govern, not just by crisis but actually by leadership, to make our schools, our communities and our countries safer.”
SALINAS — Some Salinas students debated the issue of gun control, some shouted "enough is enough" in the rain while marching to city hall and others stood in the formation of a peace sign Wednesday as students across the nation walked out of class to protest gun violence.
SALINAS, Calif. - Students at Alisal High School in Salinas joined the national movement and held a rally centered around remembering those who were killed in the Parkland, Florida school shooting and calling for change.
"This morning I really thought, 'Wow, I'm being part of something that can change the whole world. This is happening in my moment and I need to take action right now,'" senior Jasmine Mejia said.
A fight over how tough to make work requirements in the food stamp program is already threatening to derail the House farm bill, which some see as one of the only shots for bipartisan legislation this year.
The House Agriculture Committee, which was expected to release its bill as early as this week, is keeping a very tight lid on its proposal to change the program. But what little has leaked out has infuriated groups on the left and the right, jeopardizing its prospects for passage.