By January 1, 2013, California employers must put all commission agreements in writing.  

To help explain the requirement, the California Chamber of Commerce has created a white paper, "Don't Forget Commission Agreements Deadline."

Although the new law appears simple and straightforward, a number of potential pitfalls within the law could result in wage-and-hour claims filed against employers, the CalChamber warns.

According to the law, by January 1, 2013, any employee hired to perform work for commissions in California must receive a written contract that includes the method for calculating and paying the commissions.

The mandate was put in place by AB 1396, enacted in 2011. The requirement applies to employers located inside and outside California.

AB 1396 amended Labor Code Section 2751, which previously applied only to employers with no fixed California location.

The white paper covers the following critical information:

• What Is a "Commission?"
• Recordkeeping and Procedures for Compliance
• Employer Pitfalls
• Best Practices

The 2012 U.S. corn crop continues to decline and is now estimated at 10.7 billion bushels, down slightly from last month's estimate and 13% lower than 2011, USDA announced this week in its October 11 Crop Production Report. In its World Agricultural Supply & Demand Estimate (WASDE) also released October 11, the department says U.S. feed grain supplies are projected to continue their decline based on less carryin and production since September. 2011-2012 corn supplies are seen decreasing 214 million bushels and 2012-2013 beginning corn stocks were lowered 193 million bushels. Corn use was estimated to decline about 100 million bushels based on declining exports, and ending stocks for 2012-2013 were pegged at 691 million bushels. World corn stocks are estimated to drop 5.4%, to 117.27 million metric tons or about a 50-day supply, the tightest global stocks in 39 years. The department estimates average U.S. 2012 per-acre yield at 122 bu., down nearly a bushel from the September forecast, 25.2 bu. below last year and the lowest average per-acre yield since 1995. Harvested acres ticked up just under 1% to 87.7 million acres.

Untold trees died for the paper and Internet electrons flew as thousands of public comments - and the inevitable press releases - on the need for EPA to waive the ethanol Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in the wake of the worst U.S. drought in nearly 75 years, dwindling corn supplies and spiking prices were filed this week. The filing deadline was October 11, extended at the request of the National Corn Growers Assn. (NCGA). The National Chicken Council (NCC) and the National Turkey Federation (NTF), two of the most active among the 20 national agricultural organizations, including the American Feed Industry Assn. (AFIA), calling for a temporary waiver of the ethanol RFS and the groups likely to lead the charge to repeal the authorizing law in the next Congress, said in press statements that between the two associations and their members, over 12,000 comments calling for the RFS waiver were hand-delivered this week to EPA.  

The Renewable Fuel Assn. (RFA), dedicated to convincing EPA no waiver is needed, released a letter signed by 22 presidents and CEOs of various ethanol and renewable fuel companies, and sent to EPA this week supporting the RFS and thanking EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson "for your commitment to the RFS...we applaud your continued efforts to reject calls to waive or alter the RFS." The letter said, "The U.S. ethanol industry spent nearly $40 billion on raw materials, other inputs and goods and services to produce 13.9 billion gallons of ethanol during 2011." RFA also "reminded" stakeholders in an October 11 email the governors of Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, South Dakota and Oregon wrote to EPA supporting the RFS with no waiver.  

Those calling for the RFS waiver, include the governors of Arkansas, North Carolina, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Texas, New Mexico and Georgia - the EPA call for public comment was based upon the formal petitions filed by Arkansas and North Carolina - along with nearly 200 bipartisan members of Congress, environmental, consumer and hunger groups and the United Nations' Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO). EPA's deadline for a decision on the waiver is mid-November.

Republican presidential candidate Gov. Mitt Romney - keenly aware House and Senate GOP candidates are taking campaign heat for the lack of new 2012 Farm Bill - this week took his message to Van Meter, Iowa, using the rural setting and his audience of about 1,200 to blame President Obama for his administration's failure to "lead Congress" on passage of a five-year 2012 Farm Bill. In addition, the Romney campaign released a 16-page white paper that keyed on reducing taxes on farmers and ranchers, expanding access to trade, regulatory reform and North American energy independence by 2020. "The big difference between the president and me, he has no plan for rural America, no plan for agriculture, no plan for getting America back to work," Romney said.  

The Obama campaign criticized Romney for telling farmers "a series of falsehoods," failing to mention the House Farm Bill hasn't been acted upon because House GOP leaders have refused to give the bill floor time, and slamming his white paper for its lack of details. Several Democrat House members, including agriculture committee ranking member Rep. Collin Peterson (D, MN) - who called Romney's remarks "unfair and it shows a complete lack of understanding of what's going on" - acted as surrogates for the president in rebutting Romney, and National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson slammed the GOP-controlled House for failing to act on the ag committee-approved Farm Bill, and promoting a bill more in line "with the draconian principles outlined in GOP Vice Presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan's budget." The Romney white paper can be found at  http://www.mittromney.com/blog/agricultural-prosperity-mitt-romneys-vision-vibrant-rural-america. 

USDA this week held its first drought workshop in Omaha, Nebraska, and has scheduled three more. "The purpose of these workshops will be for us to listen to producers and communities regarding the intermediate and long-term challenges created by the current drought," said Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, saying USDA needs a "partnership" with local communities, states, tribes and federal government. At the Omaha meeting, USDA, along with the federal Small Business Administration and the National Credit Union Administration, outlined individual agency and department efforts to provide drought relief, as well as interagency efforts. The remaining workshops will be held in Pueblo, Colorado; Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and Archbold, Ohio.

What used to be the Gang of Six is now the Gang of Eight bipartisan Senators who have been meeting quietly on a weekly basis in hopes of finding a legislative solution to expiring tax cuts and mandatory federal budget reductions, collectively known as the "fiscal cliff" looming January 1, 2013. At issue during three days of meetings this week are about $4 trillion over the next 10 years in expiring personal and corporate tax rate reductions - the "Bush tax cuts" - and sequestration, a mandatory across-the-board 3% cut in federal spending mandated in last year's debt ceiling/deficit reduction agreement.  

The eight Senators plan to have what's being referred to as a "grand bargain" framework to offer colleagues when they return for the November lame duck session, but no announcement is expected before the election because control of the House and Senate will have obvious impact on what's included in any deal. The eight are focusing on a plan worked out by the Commission on Fiscal Responsibility & Reform, headed by former Sen. Alan Simpson (R, WY) and former Clinton chief of staff Erskine Bowles, a proposal that pushes a combination of tax cuts, federal revenue increases and entitlement program rewrites as the only logical way an effective deficit reduction plan can work. Over the next couple of weeks, the eight Senators are expected to begin expanding their work group, as well as including key House members in the discussion. The eight Senators are Sen. Mark Warner (D, VA), Sen. Richard Durbin (D, IL), Sen. Tom Coburn (R, OK), Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R, GA), Sen. Mike Crapo (R, ID), Sen. Kent Conrad (D, ND), Sen. Mike Bennet (D, CO) and Sen. Mike Johanns (R, NE).

EPA's Farm, Ranch & Rural Community Committee - an advisory panel designed to ensure EPA understands the impact of its rulemakings on rural America and food producers - will hold a teleconference on October 22 from noon to 2 p.m. EDT. The agency said the teleconference is needed "to discuss specific topics of relevance for consideration by the committee in order to provide advice and insights to the agency on environmental policies and programs that affect and engage rural communities." The Agricultural Retailers Assn. (ARA) said listening in on the committees meeting will allow comments to be brought forward on a variety of issues, including NPDES/Clean Water Act (CWA) permitting; Army Corps of Engineers/EPA CWA authority expansion; greenhouse gas regulations; Florida nutrient criteria, and drift reduction issues. For more information on how to participate, contact Alicia Kaiser at  kaiser.alicia@epa.gov.

Below is a link for the Proposition Voter Guide outlining the California Farm Bureau Federation, the Western Growers Association and the California Chamber of Commerce's positions on the statewide ballot measures that will be before California voters in the November 6 general election.

 Proposition Voter Guide