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Hopes are building in farm country for an increase in the reference prices that trigger government payments through the Price Loss Coverage program.

For the third Congress in a row, House members have offered a bill addressing agriculture’s labor shortage, reintroducing the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, which allows year-round ag labor for H-2A workers and creates a merit-based visa program for the ag sector.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture has announced $4 million in grants for its Healthy Soils Demonstration Program.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Office of Environmental Farming and Innovation (OEFI) is accepting applications for projects in climate smart technical assistance.

The House and Senate Agriculture Committees are still several months away from voting on a new farm bill, but the major issues in each of the 12 titles are coming into focus even as lawmakers continue offering new proposals they’d like to see included. Here is a summary of the issues in play as well as notable proposals lawmakers would like to see included in the bill.

The federal Environmental Protection Agency will begin reviewing a plan put forth by the Ohio EPA to reduce phosphorus in the Maumee River watershed - major tributary to the western Lake Erie basin.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is warning that funding for a new farm bill is likely to be tight in the wake of last month’s debt ceiling agreement.

Western Growers and S2G Ventures are accepting applications for the 6^th annual AgSharks competition, which offers companies a chance to win investment capital for their agricultural innovations.