After years of hard work, Michigan's legislature passed, and Gov. Granholm signed water legislation into law. The law is agreeable to farmers, agriculture officials say, but there's plenty of learning ahead as an assessment tool for new water uses is unveiled.
Jump right in - the water law's fine
Michigan legislators spent most of a year walking around the hole, arguing about its size and how deep it should be, dipping toes and pointing out the fish beneath the ice, but ultimately, lawmakers jumped right in and passed water legislation that is both protective of Great Lakes water and agreeable to private property rights defenders. Click here for full story.MMPA celebrates $35 million business expansion
Governor Jennifer M. Granholm joined state and local officials June 30 to celebrate expansion of the Michigan Milk Producers Association (MMPA) processing plant in Ovid. Click here for full story.Farm bill program sign-ups announced
The USDA announced sign-up dates for the 2008 Direct and Counter-cyclical Payment Program (DCP), a part of the 2008 farm bill. Click here for full story.ICE audits imminent; be prepared
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) wing of homeland Security has begun employer audits in Michigan, and farmers who employ migrant labor are advised to have their records in order to avoid potential penalties. Click here for full story.Michigan Business Tax changes
Michigan's business tax structure changed dramatically on Jan. 1, 2008, the day the Michigan business Tax (MBT) replaced the Single Business Tax (SBT), which had been in effect for 33 years. Like the SBT, most farmers are exempt from the MBT as long as the primary business activity is the "production of agricultural goods." Click here for full story.DEQ oversteps bounds, farm groups charge
The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) overstepped its bounds and denied a proposed dairy's National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit based solely on political and emotional reasons, according to Michigan Farm Bureau officials and representatives of other agriculture groups. Click here for full story.Financial incentives offered for wildlife habitat
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is offering financial incentives in the hope of getting landowners to convert cropland into valuable wildlife habitat. The initiative aims to increase the acres of grasslands in southern Michigan and habitat for native pollinators in the western Lower Peninsula along Lake Michigan. Click here for full story.State seed inspection program needs farmer help
Michigan farmers may soon be subject to Caveat Emptor - "let the buyer beware" - if the Michigan Department of Agriculture's (MDA) seed program funding continues to lie unsprouted in barren soil. Click here for full story.