While the Gang of Eight Senators pushing bipartisan, comprehensive immigration reform legislation the Senate preps for Judiciary Committee markup of the bill May 8.  The House made good on its word to move its version of immigration reform legislation through a series of shorter focused bills rather than a single legislative package.                                

Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R, VA), chair of the House Judiciary Committee, introduced his ag guestworker visa bill.  The Goodlatte bill would allow more ag workers into the country than the Senate bill, capping a new H-2C visa program at 500,000 workers compared with 112,000 in the Senate version.  Goodlatte's version would allow workers to stay in the country for up to three years, but they would be required to leave the country periodically. The Senate bill allows for a five-year period before a worker would need to leave the country.   

The bill also covers jobs in meat processing. Further, Goodlatte's bill lacks the "fast track" green card option available in the Senate bill that would allow undocumented aliens in the program to qualify after five years. While the meat and poultry industries praised the bill, the United Farm Workers, which negotiated with ag growers on the Senate language, strongly criticized the legislation.  The ag growers coalition said its support remains with the Senate bill.  Goodlatte said this week he expects to introduce a series of reform measures over the next several weeks.

SCOPE OF WORK - POSITION #1:

Using the CAL POLY Feedmill as an example facility the intern will create a document where all pre-requisite programs required under the Food Safety Modernization Act are developed and implemented.  This includes: Standard Operating Procedures, Good Manufacturing Procedures, hazard analyses, preventive controls, verification and validation, and recordkeeping.   Based on the materials developed, a how-to booklet with example documents for the CA feed industry will be developed.

SCOPE OF WORK - POSITION #2

The intern will compile all the data from the 2012 corn crop survey and publish the survey results summary.  This would be distributed on the FEED website, and shared with FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine, and CA ARPAS.  The intern will also be working with Toxicologists (@ UC DAVIS) on compiling data of all feed trials/studies associated with new and/or undefined feed ingredients.  The intern will work with CDFA Feed Inspection field staff in obtaining samples, requesting nutrient profiles, and compiling all data findings.  The data compiled will be utilized the by SAFE Technical Advisory Sub-Committee.

ADDITIONAL SCOPE OF WORK, IF TIME PERMITS:

Either or both Intern(s) can work with the FEED and SAFE Program staff on designing a SAFE Program Newsletter template.  This publication will be distributed to all CA feed licensees bi-annually.

Each intern will receive up to $2000.00 (200 hours at $10/hr; ~8 weeks).  Lodging and Mileage are not funded.  Position #1 will require some time in San Luis Obispo and Sacramento.  Position #2 will be based in Sacramento.  Internships will begin about June 17^th.

Please send resume, letter of interest that includes which position you are applying for and two (2) letters of reference to:  Dr. Marit Arana, ARPAS Scholarship Chair, PO Box 38, Oakdale, CA 95361 or marit.arana@algilbert.com. The deadline for application is May 31, 2013.  All materials must be received by Dr. Arana on or before May 31^st.

A bill that would raise the minimum wage and index it to inflation passed it's first committee last week.  AB 10 (Alejo) passed Assembly Labor and Employment Committee on April 24.  The bill would increase the minimum wage to $8.25on January 1, 2014 then further increase the minimum wage, on and after January 1, 2015, to not less than $8.75 per hour, and on and after January 1, 2016, to not less than $9.25 per hour.  The bill also would index the minimum wage to the Consumer Price Index for Inflation, creating an annual trigger for wage increases. 

In a news article recently Governor Brown stated that meaningful changes to CEQA was unlikely this year.  As he toured China, viewing the many large infrastructure projects he discussed how difficult many of these projects are to build in California.  When asked by reporters about his efforts to reform the law the Governor was very concerned that the current efforts are stalled.

By JOHN O'CONNELL

Capital Press

Agricultural shippers say they're bracing for federal trucking safety regulations that take effect July 1 and threaten to make transporting freight more costly and time-consuming.

The rule changes will reduce a long-haul driver's seven-day work week from 82 to 70 hours, counting waiting time while cargo is loaded and unloaded.

Drivers will need to take a 30-minute break for every eight hours on the road. Furthermore, regulations allowing drivers to restart their work weeks after 34 hours of consecutive time off will soon mandate the breaks include at least two nights of rest from 1 to 5 a.m., when officials reason the body needs sleep the most. The 34-hour restart, now available at a driver's discretion, will be allowed only once every seven days.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced the final rule specifying the forthcoming changes in December 2011, in response to litigation by safety activists. Fines for each infraction may be up to $11,000 for trucking companies and $2,750 for drivers.

In response to the new regulations, Potandon Produce, a fresh packer of potatoes in Idaho Falls, has a team studying ways to load trucks more efficiently, said Jamey Higham, vice president of sales.

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A class action antitrust case brought by shippers against the Union Pacific, BSNF, Norfolk Southern and CSX elicited a strong statement of support this week from the American Chemistry Council (ACC).  The council said the suit, alleging fuel surcharges imposed on shippers from 2003 to 2008 represent surcharge "price fixing," "causing members of the Council and other shippers to pay excessive charges for freight rail shipments."  Because railroad mergers have led to far less competition, 75% of all freight rail stations are captive to a single major railroad, ACC said.  "This extraordinary market power has enabled railroads to charge shippers higher rates and extra fees, including fuel surcharges."  ACC said a 2006 study it commissioned showed fuel surcharges imposed by rails exceeded by $6.4 billion the actual fuel costs that the surcharges were supposed to recover, and cited a survey released in 2013 that shows chemical shippers are continuing to pay the fuel surcharges.             

A U.S. District Court suit brought against EPA by two environmental groups alleging the registration of more than 380 chemicals negatively impacted 214 species in 49 states was dismissed this week by the court.  EPA, along with Crop Life America (CLA) filed for the dismissal of the so-called "mega suit" claiming the two enviro groups complaint lacked specific information on what the agency had or had not done relative to the chemicals.  Further, the two said the suit was filed in the wrong court and had missed the statutory deadline for filing a chemical registration challenge under RCRA. The judge told the plaintiffs -- the Pesticide Action Network and the Center for Biological Diversity -- they have 30 days to amend their complaint or appeal the judge's ruling within 60 days.  Several crop protection and chemical industry groups were granted intervenor status in the suit, which if not dismissed, would have drastically altered crop production and productivity in  the U.S.

Michael Scuse, former USDA undersecretary for farm and foreign agriculture services, has been named acting deputy secretary of agriculture replacing Kathleen Merrigan, who left the department this week.  Scuse is former Delaware secretary of agriculture.  Darci Vetter, deputy undersecretary under Scuse, will become acting undersecretary and Suzanne Heinen, administrator of Foreign Agriculture Service (FAS), will move up to Vetter's old job.  Phil Karsting, former staff director for retired Sen. Herb Kohl (D, WI), becomes head of FAS.  Doug O'Brien will serve as acting undersecretary for rural development, replacing Dallas Tonsager who retired this week, and Ann Mills will become acting undersecretary for natural resources and environment.  Over at EPA, Shaun McGrath has been named regional administrator for EPA Region 8 in Denver. McGrath was former director for the American Solar Energy Society in Boulder, CO, and began his career in Kansas working in the state Department of Commerce European office.  He's the former mayor of Boulder, and spent 10 years working with the Western Governors' Assn.  Charlotte, NC, Mayor Anthony Foxx has been nominated to replace Ray LaHood as secretary of transportation.  Foxx, a former Department of Justice U.S. attorney, has a strong national reputation for intermodal investment and development on behalf of Charlotte. 

Walking and running have about the same health benefits, researchers found - you just have to walk more to get them.

Spending the same amount of energy yielded similar reductions in the risks of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and coronary heart disease, according to Paul Williams, PhD, of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, Calif., and Paul Thompson, MD, of Hartford Hospital in Hartford, Conn.

Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology

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