EPA Delays WOTUS Deadline Until Post-Election; NCFC Launches Toolkit to Aid in Drafting Comments
This week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued an extension of the due date, until November 14, for comments on their proposal to redefine “waters of the United States.” It was a move widely interpreted as being driven by politics as sound public policy; the WOTUS proposal has been used as a campaign issue by the opponents of several vulnerable Democrat senators and the extension pushes the deadline past the election.
As you may recall from previous NCFC Updates, earlier this year the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released a proposed rule to revise the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) for all Clean Water Act (CWA) programs. If left unchanged, the rule would greatly expand federal regulatory jurisdiction over farms and ranches across the country.
To assist help ensure a robust response on this issue from the farmer co-op community, NCFC has prepared a toolkit to assist your cooperative, state council or member-owners in responding to the WOTUS rulemaking.
The toolkit is available on our website by clicking here. Also on this webpage, you will find links to other letters and resources related to the rulemaking as well as legislation NCFC is supporting calling for EPA to withdraw and rework the rule.
This toolkit includes:
- PowerPoint presentation that explains in general terms what the rulemaking would mean for production agriculture;
- Template comment letter that can be customized for producers, co-ops or state councils;
- Summary of the rulemaking and critical concerns;
- NCFC’s Issue Brief on WOTUS;
- Comment letter available on the NCFC Legislative Action Center;
- Link to detailed maps of water features subject to the rulemaking.
NCFC continues to prepare its own comments on the proposed rule and urges co-ops and their members to make their voices heard as well.
NCFC Annual Meeting Registration Now Open
The registration for the 2015 NCFC Annual Meeting is now open and can be accessed online at http://www.ncfc.org/events/2015-annual-meeting. Next year’s meeting will be held February 11-13, 2015, at the Paradise Point Resort & Spa in San Diego, Calif.; the special discounted room rate for the meeting is $199 per night and reservations can be made by contacting the hotel directly at 800-344-2626.
While the program of the meeting continues to come together, some distinct themes are emerging. We will explore how co-ops and their members are ensuring that they seize the potential offered by the revolution of “big data;” we will look at how co-ops are responding to increasing demands in areas such as sustainability, social responsibility and transparency from customers, the public and interest groups. Finally, we will consider how the political environment in Washington and events around the world will impact farms and co-ops in the year to come.
The meeting will kick-off on Wednesday, February 11, with a full-day Government Affairs Conference. Our highly regarded Directors Education Conference will get underway that afternoon and continue on Thursday and Friday. And finally, our Legal, Tax and Accounting Conference will once again run from Thursday morning through mid-day Friday. A CFO roundtable discussion being held Wednesday afternoon.
In addition, the golf tournament to benefit the NCFC Education Foundation will be held on the afternoon of Friday, February 13; transportation will be provided from the hotel to the Maderas Golf Course, which was recently named a “Top 100” public course by the editors of Golf Digest.
For questions or assistance in registering, please contact Lisa Schriver, NCFC’s meeting planner, at lscrhiver@ncfc.org or 202-626-8700.
Entry Deadline for 2014 Cooperative Information Fair Approaching
NCFC is pleased to announce a call for entries for our 69th Cooperative Information Fair. The Fair recognizes excellence in communications and marketing projects of farmer cooperatives that effectively promote business, inform members and disseminate information to the public.
Professors from the journalism and mass communications school of a major university will judge entries in 34 categories, ranging from best press releases and best magazines to best marketing plans and best advertising campaigns and multi-media campaigns. Winning entries will be showcased to CEOs and co-op directors at the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives Annual Meeting, held February 11-13, 2015 at Paradise Point in San Diego, California.
The deadline to enter is Friday, October 17, 2014. For a rulebook and entry forms, please visit the NCFC web site at http://www.ncfc.org/information/ncfc-cooperative-information-fair.
Upcoming Events:
- NCFC Human Resources Conference—October 23-24, 2014—Hyatt Regency O’Hare, Chicago, Ill.
- Government Affairs Committee Meeting—November 12-14, 2014—Benson Hotel, Portland, Ore.
- 86th NCFC Annual Meeting—February 11-13, 2015—Paradise Point Hotel, San Diego, Calif.